


Echoes

by AGirlNamedEd



Series: Echoes [1]
Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Canon-typical swearing, F/M, Fuck Sazed (The Adventure Zone), Gen, Innuendo, Johann is spelled with two Ns you cowards, M/M, Minor Avi/Johann, Minor Barry Bluejeans/Lup, Minor Carey/Killian (The Adventure Zone), Minor Davenport/Merle Highchurch, Minor Julia Burnsides/Magnus Burnsides, Multi, Panic Attacks, Past Lives, Reincarnation, idk if they warrant tags but I figured I should err on the side of caution, just.............merle, like FUCK that guy seriously, mild body horror, warnings: merle
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-09
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-03-15 17:17:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 54,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13617996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AGirlNamedEd/pseuds/AGirlNamedEd
Summary: Kravitz is the conductor of the Neverwinter Symphony Orchestra, and he can see people as they were in their previous lives. It's honestly not that big of a deal. The visions are there and gone in an instant anyway.Except then he meets Taako, the prettiest person he's ever seen, and things sort of spiral out of control from there.





	1. The Bard

**Author's Note:**

> I can't believe my first TAZ fic is...this nonsense (who am I kidding yes I can all I write is weird AUs that nobody asked for)
> 
> So this came about mostly via conversations with my roommate Max. I wanted to get at least 5000 words written before I started posting it and I've hit that goal so here we are! I have a lot of plans and ideas for this ~~so let's see what I do before I inevitably get sucked into 6 other projects~~
> 
> Hope you enjoy! Sorry this one's kind of short. I'm going to add more tags and things as they come up (there may or may not end up being some good ol' Davenchurch and/or Avi/Johann at some point because I'm a weenie........) but yeah. Have a good one!

Kravitz’s hands were cold again. He rubbed them together and blew on them, trying in vain to warm them. It hardly ever worked, but he was almost used to it by now. He gratefully accepted his coffee when the barista handed it to him, wrapping his frigid hands around it in an attempt to leach some warmth.

As he turned away from the counter, a wave of bizarre yet familiar nostalgia washed over him. He locked eyes with the person behind him, a short, slender young man with bags under his eyes and a violin case in one hand. For a brief moment, Kravitz saw him in a garish outfit, a feathered cap, violin strapped to his back. The briefest refrain of a song—only seven notes—echoed at the back of Kravitz’s mind. And then it was gone, the man was back in black dress pants and a wrinkled white shirt, looking blankly up at him and probably wondering who this weirdo staring at him was.

Kravitz smiled awkwardly and scooted out of the way. It was far from the first time he’d been caught staring after an episode. He hurried out of the coffee shop and down the street, trying not to feel too embarrassed about it.

When he got to the concert hall, his friend Avi slugged him in the arm. “What, no coffee for me?”

Kravitz rolled his eyes and took a large gulp just to spite him. “Text me before I get all the way here next time, and maybe I’ll think about it.”

“Aw, that’s no fair.” Avi tried to sound upset, but he couldn’t quite wipe the grin off his face. Kravitz relaxed a little. He and Avi had first met at the gym they both frequented. After discovering that they worked at the same concert hall (though in wildly different professions: a conductor and a security guard, respectively), they became fast friends and, occasionally, drinking buddies. Avi always had the best brandy.

“You look kinda shook up,” Avi said. “Everything okay?”

He shrugged. “Fine. Had an, ah, awkward encounter at the café.”

Avi laughed. “Yeah, that sounds like you.” Kravitz scowled. “But hey, you made it out with dignity intact, yeah?” Avi grinned. “And you still got your coffee out of it. Seems like a pretty good tradeoff to me.”

For a second, Avi’s security uniform was replaced with a blue and white tunic and armor. Then Kravitz blinked, and it was gone. “Guess so,” he mumbled.

Avi clapped him on the shoulder. “Well, don’t let it eat you too much. Have fun with today’s rehearsal.”

“Thanks.” Kravitz tossed his empty coffee cup a nearby trash can and hurried off with a wave to Avi.

He couldn’t, of course, tell Avi the whole story. There was no way he’d believe him, anyway. Kravitz knew it sounded ridiculous and more than a little insane. When it had first started, back in university, he’d thought he was suffering from some kind of hallucinations. His aunt had kindly explained that no, he was just a little more psychically attuned to his past life than most people. Anyone he’d ever come into contact with in his past life would occasionally flicker between their other life and their current one in his eyes, and sometimes he’d hear things differently as well—a different lilt to their voice that wasn’t there to anyone else, or the song he’d heard earlier with the violinist. It always went away quickly though, and Aunt Paloma assured him it was nothing to worry about. So he did his best to ignore it, and most of the time he did a pretty good job.

There was something about that violinist that stuck with him, though. Kravitz couldn’t help but feel like he was someone important, or at least had been. He’d felt the same slight pull towards him that he had towards Avi when they first met, possibly even stronger.

But it wasn’t important right now, so Kravitz squared his shoulders and walked into the concert hall. Most of the orchestra was already there, and they scrambled to their places as he came in. “Alright,” he said, shouting so as to be heard in the percussion section. A bit more of his accent slipped out when he raised his voice, and he grimaced. “Alright,” he tried again. That was better. “A few minutes to warm up, then we’ll get started.”

As the musicians started getting settled and tuning up, Kravitz heard the door behind him slam open. He turned, about to ask if people could _kindly_ not knock the entire building down, but his mouth snapped shut when he saw who it was.

It was the violinist bard from the coffee shop.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said. Kravitz blinked. He knew everybody in the orchestra, and he had definitely never seen this man before today—at least, not in this life. “I, uh, got lost,” the man continued.

Kravitz folded his arms. “Now that, I know for certain, is not true.” When the other man started to protest half-heartedly, Kravitz held up a hand. “I definitely bumped into you in the coffee shop. You can say you misjudged your time while getting coffee. It’s an honest mistake, it happens. Just don’t let it happen again.”

The man shrugged and tightened his grip on his violin case. “Sure, yeah,” he mumbled.

“Hey, don’t beat yourself up over it.” Kravitz held out a hand. “I’m Kravitz. I conduct the Neverwinter Symphony Orchestra. And you are…?” He trailed off, waiting for the violinist to fill in his name.

“Johann,” he said, carefully shaking Kravitz’s hand like he was afraid Kravitz would crush him. “I, uh, guess the coordinators didn’t tell you about me, huh.”

“No, they did,” Kravitz assured him. “But all I was told was ‘don’t worry, we’ve got a new second violin for you’ and nothing else. I didn’t even know when you were coming, to be honest.”

“Yeah, that’s kind of how my life goes,” Johann muttered. He didn’t sound bitter, just…resigned. Kravitz wondered if he’d been like this before, too, or if his quiet, sad demeanor was specific to this Johann.

The seven notes echoed in his ears again, and Kravitz had to suppress a shudder. “Well, there’s your spot over there,” he said, nodding to the empty second violin chair. “You’ve got all the sheet music, yeah?” Johann nodded. “Okay, well, we can do introductions and all that later. If we want to be done rehearsal at a reasonable time today, we’d better get started.”

The rest of the rehearsal went by fairly uneventfully. Despite being new, Johann picked up all the songs very quickly, which was a huge relief. It was incredibly disconcerting, though, looking over at the string section and occasionally seeing a huge feathered hat.


	2. Starblaster Café

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz meets some people of interest. Or, well, people, and one person in particular that he's interested in.
> 
> Also, his past sight may or may not be acting up. People shouldn't have elf ears, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I officially have two buffer chapters again so I'm allowing myself to post chapter 2 today! I have OVER NINE THOUSAAAAAAND words down for this so far and like...I think it's shaping up to be around 15 chapters? That might change, who knows.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!

_pleeeeeeeease?_

_Avi you don’t need to whine. I’ll buy you your coffee._

_thx kravitz ur the best_

  
_You have to pay me back for it._  


_> :(_

Kravitz shook his head with a chuckle. At least he knew Avi would actually pay him back, no matter how many grouchy emoticons he sent. He snatched his keys from their hook by the door and headed out, locking his apartment behind him. He’d already been planning on leaving early that day, anyway. His coffeemaker wasn’t working, and since he hadn’t gotten around to either fixing it or buying a new one he was stuck buying his coffee every morning. As Aunt Paloma would say, if that was his biggest problem he was doing pretty well.

Speaking of Aunt Paloma, he still needed to swing by a bookstore and pick up a birthday present for her. Kravitz grimaced. Of course he only ever seemed to remember that when he didn’t have time to do it. Maybe he’d remember to do it on the way home, but probably not.

As he looked both ways to make sure it was safe to cross at the crosswalk (Neverwinter drivers were absolutely insane, in his opinion), a sign caught his eye. Two signs, actually. One was a cartoonish rocket ship shape, painted in bright colours and emblazoned with the words “STARBLASTER CAFÉ” in large block letters. The other was a simple yet elegant wooden rectangle with “Bureau of Books” expertly carved into it.

Kravitz stared. It was too convenient. He needed both coffee and a book, and here were two places side by side where he could get both. But he definitely couldn’t pass up the opportunity. He checked his phone, decided that, yes, he did have enough time, and hurried across the street.

Stepping inside the Bureau of Books was strangely nostalgic. Kravitz chalked it up to the store’s homey interior. The shelves and furniture were all beautiful wood pieces, and even to Kravitz’s untrained eye they looked handmade. There was a sort of cylindrical fish tank built into the cashier’s desk at the back of the store, and standing behind it was a young woman with white hair. As Kravitz made eye contact, she smiled, and he saw the weight of a hundred years on her shoulders. Then he blinked, and it was gone.

Looking to his left, Kravitz could see that the Bureau of Books and the Starblaster Café were connected in a sort of open concept way. There was no wall between them, and customers milled back and forth from the café to the bookstore as they pleased. A hastily written sign on a table near the café read “Please No Unpurchased BoB Items In Café!”

Kravitz turned his attention back to the bookstore. He was there on business, dammit, coffee would have to wait. Checking his watch confirmed that he only had a few minutes to browse before grabbing coffee and heading out again.

Thankfully, he knew exactly what he was looking for, so he approached the nearest employee, a short old man with glasses and a grey beard. “Excuse me,” he said politely.

The man turned to him with a big smile that wrinkled the corners of his eyes. “Hey, welcome to the Bureau!” His image shifted slightly to the left and Kravitz stared. Flowers dotted his beard, an eyepatch covered one eye, and his clothes were replaced with dented armor. In one hand he held a thick book, in the other a warhammer. Kravitz blinked a few times. This image took a little longer to go away than usual, but it did go away, and only then did he realise the man was still talking. “What’re you in for? Can I interest you in our religion section? Or how about botany?” He winked conspiratorially. “I know where to find _all_ the best plants.”

Something about the way he said those words made Kravitz’s skin crawl. “No,” he said slowly. “I’m looking for _An In-Depth Guide to Dream Interpretation_ by Maureen Miller. Do you have it?”

The man chuckled knowingly, as though inviting Kravitz to share in a joke he didn’t get. “Hell, don’t know. Hey Lucretia!” He turned and shouted at the woman behind the counter. She already had her hands at her temples and was massaging them gently. “We got anything about dreams and shit?”

“Merle, for God’s sake, we’ve _talked_ about this.” The woman—Lucretia—stepped out from behind the counter and walked towards them. She carried herself with grace, and her voice dripped with gravitas and disappointment. “If someone asks for a book you don’t know about, you _quietly_ take them to look it up. You don’t yell across the store for me or Barry or, God forbid, Magnus.”

Merle’s grin had turned to a shit eating one. “This is easier.”

“I’m going to fire you,” she muttered, but even to Kravitz that sounded like an empty threat. Lucretia turned to Kravitz and held out a hand. “Welcome to the Bureau of Books. Sorry about Merle.”

“Not at all.” Kravitz shook her hand. She had a firm grip. “I’m just looking for a birthday present for my aunt. _An In-Depth Guide to Dream Interpretation_ by Maureen Miller.”

Lucretia’s face brightened. “Oh, yes, I’m _very_ familiar with Dr. Miller’s work.” She turned and started walking off, gesturing for Kravitz to follow her.

“Told you this was easier!” Merle called after them. Lucretia shook her head, but she was chuckling softly.

Kravitz followed her to a section labelled “Philosophy and Psychology.” After a few moments of searching, she pulled a book from the shelf and handed it to him. “There you are.”

“Excellent,” Kravitz said, turning the book over in his hands. It was thick, hardcover, with a rather utilitarian front cover. It looked more like a thesis or reference guide than the other books he’d seen in Aunt Paloma’s collection. He looked back at Lucretia to thank her, but stopped when he saw her.

She looked like she’d aged about twenty years in an instant. Her hair, already white, was pulled sharply back from her face rather than in a short, close cropped cut. Lines creased her face where previously there had been none. Instead of her loose cardigan and dress, a flowing white and light blue robe hung all the way down to the floor. And in one hand, she clutched a white oak staff almost the same height she was.

Like with Merle, her past image took longer to go away than usual, but it did go away. “Thanks,” he croaked.

She looked at him strangely, which he was sadly used to. “Not at all,” she said. “Anything else?”

“No, thank you,” he replied. “Just the one.”

Lucretia nodded in the direction of the checkout. “Well, whenever you’re ready, Barry will give you a hand.” A chubby man with glasses stood behind the till, reading a comic book. Kravitz squeezed his eyes shut and opened them again, and the faint outline of a red robe surrounding Barry disappeared.

He thanked Lucretia again and headed for the cashier. Checking his phone, it looked like he only had about ten more minutes of leeway before he had to head out to rehearsal. There was no one else at the Bureau counter, and a short lineup at the Starblaster’s. Hopefully he had enough time.

Barry looked up and smiled at Kravitz as he approached. “Find everything okay?” he asked, reaching to take Kravitz’s book and scan it.

“Yes, thank you.” Kravitz bit his tongue to keep from flinching as Barry’s form cycled rapidly between jeans and a white t-shirt, jeans and a red robe, and jeans and armor, then finally settle on his original look. Was everybody in this place connected to his past life?

Barry handed him his change and his book, then reached to adjust his glasses. “Well, have a good one.” His form flickered and was completely engulfed in a red robe this time. Then he was back, smiling awkwardly at Kravitz.

Kravitz clutched his book. “Thank you. You too.” He hurried over to the café side of the shop. He didn’t have time to be distracted by his past sight right now. Weird as all this was, it wasn’t important. What _was_ important was getting his and Avi’s coffee and getting to rehearsal on time.

Still, he couldn’t help but think about it as he waited in line at the Starblaster. In the last ten years, he’d scarcely met anyone who pinged his past life radar. Very occasionally he’d come across people at the convenience store or waiting in line at the post office whose faces would flash to slightly different for a second, then back to normal. He hadn’t felt any sort of pull towards any of them until he met Avi, and then Johann. Aunt Paloma once told him that the stronger the pull he felt towards someone, the more important they had been to him in his past life. According to her, the fact that he didn’t feel a pull towards many people wasn’t a big deal. “How many people do we meet in our lives?” she’d said. “Just because you met them doesn’t mean they were a large part of your story. When you meet someone who was important to you, you’ll know.”

He’d felt a distinct tug in his gut when he’d talked to Merle, Lucretia, and Barry. It was stronger than the one that had pulled him to Avi, compelled him to ask if he needed a spotter. It was stronger than what he felt towards Johann, pulling his eyes to him every rehearsal. He hadn’t really noticed it much at the time, but now he realized he’d been compelled towards Merle, to ask him specifically for advice rather than wander the shelves hopelessly. He’d thought it was just that he was short on time, but no, the pull towards Merle had been what set it off. Lucretia and Barry’s pulls had been just as strong.

But as he got closer to the front of the line, there was something inside him pulling him forward insistently, making him want to push past the few people left ahead of him. Kravitz clenched his fists and held his ground. He was stronger than whatever this was, dammit, and he would not be moved.

He was, however, a little afraid of what would be waiting for him when he got to the front.

A small, middle-aged man with an impressive moustache rushed past Kravitz, rag in hand and apron around his waist. For an instant, as Kravitz’s soul tugged and he turned to look at him, he was even smaller and wearing a tuxedo, and it was hard to tell from behind but were his ears pointed? Then it was gone, and he was running for an absolute hulk of a man who had just come into the café. “Magnus!” he shouted, skidding to a stop in front of him. “What took you so long?”

Magnus grinned down at him. Height wasn’t the only thing that made Magnus seem to tower over everyone else. Kravitz had never seen someone as absolutely jacked as Magnus. He was no slouch at the gym himself, but Magnus looked like every jock Kravitz had known in high school and college put together, with several thousand protein shakes thrown in for good measure. “Relax, Dad’nport,” he said, brushing past him towards the back, a heavy looking box in his arms like it was nothing. “I got here, didn’t I?” As he passed Kravitz, a ripple seemed to wash over him. Suddenly Magnus was covered with scars and wearing some sort of feathered armor, and he had what looked like a lumberjack’s axe and a sword straight out of a nine-year-old’s sketchbook strapped to his back. Kravitz squeezed his eyes shut, and when he opened them again Magnus was in jeans and a “FREE HUGS” t-shirt.

“It’s _Davenport_ ,” the short man insisted, and Kravitz got the impression this was an ongoing battle he was losing. He trotted along behind Magnus, and Kravitz forced himself to stop paying attention to their conversation. Even if they’d been important to him in one life, he didn’t get to pry on them in this one. Besides, he was still being insistently yanked forward.

“HEY TAAKO!” Magnus bellowed, disappearing into the back. “I GOT YOUR SHIT!” Kravitz’s eyebrows shot up. Who the hell named their kid Taako?

“FUCKIN FINALLY!” came the reply.

“NOW CUT THAT OUT!” Davenport shouted, following Magnus.

The woman taking orders at the counter grinned and leaned back to shout into the kitchen. “YEAH, BOYS, WATCH YOUR FUCKING LANGUAGE!”

Davenport appeared at her elbow, death in his eyes. She grinned, not a trace of shame on her face. He sighed and left again and the woman turned to Kravitz. “Hey, what’ll you have?”

“Uh.” In all the excitement and anxiety, Kravitz hadn’t actually looked at the menu boards. “Just. Two coffees, please. Medium.”

As she punched his order into the cash register, she shifted and Kravitz felt the pull turn towards her. Her hair hung loose instead of being squashed under a hair net. A red robe identical to Barry’s hung draped around her shoulders. And this time there could be no mistaking: her ears were definitely pointed. Kravitz rubbed at his eyes. That had to be a mistake, right?

“Hey, Luuuuuuuup,” someone drawled. Arms appeared around her shoulders and a face identical to hers aside from their makeup propped its chin on her shoulder. “How much do you love me?”

“I’m not helping you with the macarons, Taako, fuck off,” Lup said evenly, handing Kravitz his change and easily dislodging Taako to start on Kravitz’s coffee.

Taako pouted, and Kravitz was lost. His heart _sang_ , and once he laid eyes on him he couldn’t tear them away. Taako was absolutely the most beautiful person Kravitz had ever seen. Even with his hair tucked up under a hair net and flour on his face and wearing an apron with a cheesy cartoon rocket ship on it. Kravitz felt himself practically yanked forward, and he actually stumbled into the counter.

He felt himself flush when Taako glanced at him, then melt when Taako smiled, showing off the gap in his front teeth. God, he was _gorgeous_. Taako leaned forward on the counter, still grinning at Kravitz. “Hey, thug, what’s your name?” he asked.

Kravitz heard, in the back of his mind, Taako’s voice follow the question up with “I’m gonna tentacle your dick,” which raised all _sorts_ of questions that he didn’t have the time or headspace for right now. “Uh,” he said eloquently. “Kravitz.”

Taako winked and shifted. Kravitz clutched his book tighter and stared. His ponytail fell out of its hair net and draped over one shoulder and the image on his apron changed from the Starblaster’s logo to the words “Sizzle It Up With Taako!” Like Lup’s, his ears became pointed and studded with several piercings. Kravitz rubbed his eyes again, being careful to not dislodge his contacts. What the hell was going on?

“See, Lup?” Taako said as she squeezed past him to hand Kravitz his coffees. “Kravitz thinks you should help me.”

She shrugged. “You opened this can of worms, now lie in it. Also, stop flirting with the hot customer.”

Kravitz started stammering. He wasn’t even sure what he was trying to say.

“Where’s the fun in that?” Taako asked, winking at Kravitz again. Kravitz stuttered something else and bolted. His entire body was hot with embarrassment and attraction. He had to get out of there before he said or did anything insane.


	3. Hogsbottom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz meets up with friends for a night out. Unfortunately his sight starts acting up in increasingly unexpected and horrifying ways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the "existential horror" section of the fanfiction! I'm sorry I'm like this everyone

“I’m serious, you should have asked him out.”

Kravitz shook his head. “Avi, you can’t ask people out while they’re working. That’s wrong. They’re being paid to be nice to you; it isn’t fair.”

“But he was flirting with you,” Avi countered. “You said both he and the other barista said so. I’ve had lots of cute baristas and cashiers in my life, and they were super friendly and all that shit that comes with their job, but none of them winked at me and called me hot. Them’s flirtin’ words, Kravitz.”

Kravitz sighed. He couldn’t exactly tell Avi he was weirded out by the fact that the most gorgeous person he’d ever met was also, apparently, an elf or something in his past life. He felt that was a fair thing to be freaked out by. Kravitz had seen several people’s pasts before, and none of them had so much as hinted at being nonhuman. But the really scary thing, he felt, was that Kravitz didn’t even mind it all that much. Taako was still just as attractive in this life as he had been before.

Honestly, the weirdest thing for Kravitz was that his brain had filled in the end of Taako’s first sentence with “I’m gonna tentacle your dick,” which he had no intention of exploring, now or ever.

“I’ve had people flirt with me before,” Kravitz said. “It’s not a big deal.”

Avi shrugged. “Suit yourself, I guess. Anyway, we’re here.”

Kravitz looked up at the bar Avi had dragged him out to. Normally, Kravitz preferred drinking at home, where it was cheaper and he didn’t have drunk teenagers or bachelorette parties hanging off of him. Avi had assured him that Hogsbottom was a classy establishment, despite the name. Kravitz couldn’t hear the bass from the parking lot, which was a good start.

Another man was waiting for them by the door, and it took Kravitz’s sight shifting in momentarily for him to recognise who it was. “Johann?” he asked Avi. “You invited Johann?”

“Is that a problem?”

“No, I just…” Kravitz trailed off, running a hand through his dreads. “I didn’t know you two were that close. Or that you, you know, knew each other at all.”

Avi laughed. “I know everyone that works in that concert hall. Besides, he seemed like he could use a night out.”

“Fair enough.” They’d reached Johann by that point, and his clothes, while still louder than Kravitz had expected from Johann’s casual wear, were at least not pantaloons anymore. “Hello, Johann.”

“Hey.” Over the past week, Kravitz had learned that Johann’s somewhat droopy voice was just…his voice, and it sounded the same no matter what mood he was in. “I, uh, I didn’t want to go in by myself,” Johann continued, hands stuffed in his pockets. “Never been here before and all that.”

Avi clapped him on the shoulder, sending Johann stumbling a bit. Kravitz held back a smile. “No problem. C’mon, the night’s young.”

Kravitz followed Avi inside, still a little unsure. Hogsbottom was more of a pub than a bar. Kravitz allowed the somewhat relaxed atmosphere to help calm him. He sat down across from Avi in the booth Avi picked for them, a little surprised when Johann decided to sit next to Avi instead of him. Although, he supposed, he was technically Johann’s boss. This was probably a little weird for him. Avi started chattering away about the brandy you could get at Hogsbottom—“not as good as mine from back home, but nothing is, you know?”—but was suddenly interrupted by a shout.

“Heyyyy, Avi!” A young woman practically bounded up to their table, followed by another woman at least a good head and shoulders taller than her. “What brings you around here?”

“Hey, Carey. Hi, Killian.” Avi grinned at them. “Just hanging out. Date night?”

Carey, the smaller woman, grinned and leaned back into Killian, who wrapped her arms around her. “Damn right. Kills finally has a night off and I wasn’t letting that go to waste.”  
“Who’re your boys?” Killian asked, eyeing Kravitz and Johann. Kravitz met her critical eye evenly. He’d been stared down by his fair share of intimidating people. This was no different.

A shimmer seemed to fall across Carey and Killian, and when Kravitz blinked it out of his vision it took everything he had to not throw himself across the booth away from them. Carey was covered in dark blue scales, her face morphed into a lizard-like shape. Killian’s skin was green and she had huge tusks jutting out of her face. Her buzz cut grew a little shaggier. Her entire body swelled so she towered over the rest of them.

They were some kind of monsters.

Just as he’d had time to process that, Carey and Killian were back to normal and everyone was staring at him. He knew how he looked—staring open-mouthed at these random friends of Avi’s for no reason. He snapped his mouth shut and cleared his throat. “Right, Killian, Carey, sorry. It’s, ah. Nice? To meet you?” He didn’t mean for it to come out like a question, and now they were all looking at him like he had two heads again.

“Uh, yeah,” Avi said, “this is, uh, is—is Johann, over here, and that’s Kravitz.”

“Hi,” Johan said with a wave. Kravitz raised his hand in silence. He didn’t trust himself to speak again.

Kravitz kept his eyes down the entire rest of the time Killian and Carey were at their table. He knew he was coming off as rude, but he didn’t want to risk seeing them as those…things again.

Maybe Taako being an elf wasn’t that big a deal in the grand scheme of things after all.

“So what was that all about?” Avi asked after Carey and Killian left for their own table. He’d shaken his hair out of its stubby ponytail and was putting it back up while he talked. “You alright, Kravitz?”

“Fine,” Kravitz said, still looking at the table. “Just thought I recognised her from somewhere, that’s all.” It was an easy, practised lie, one he’d been telling for ten years.

“Bullshit,” Avi said before sticking his hair elastic in his mouth so he could use both hands in his hair.

Kravitz started and looked up. “Pardon?”

“I have to agree with Avi,” Johann piped in. “You were looking at them like they were gonna reach out and crush your head just for existing.”

Kravitz squirmed. “Killian reminded me of someone I used to be afraid of. I’d rather not talk about it, thanks.” Another practised line. If people ever pressed him about his odd behaviour, nine times out of ten all he had to do was pretend he was uncomfortable and ask to not talk about it. Although, to be honest, there wasn’t usually a lot of pretending.

Thankfully, Avi and Johann dropped the subject after that. Kravitz insisted on buying the first round. He knew what the other two made, and it wasn’t much, at least compared to him. Avi asked for apple brandy neat, “even though they don’t have the good stuff.” Johann just shrugged and said he’d take whatever. “After the week I’ve had,” he said, “I don’t much care what goes in my body as long as there’s something.”

Kravitz frowned. “Johann, are you alright?”

Johann waved him off. “Just exaggerating. I’m eating fine.” There seemed to be an unspoken ‘mostly’ at the end of the sentence, but Kravitz let it drop.

“Right, I’ll be right back.” As Kravitz stood, he caught sight of Carey and Killian in their booth. Carey was laughing, and Killian had her chin in her hand and was gazing at her with an open affection that made Kravitz’s heart melt. He quickly turned and hurried away towards the counter. He didn’t mean to seem rude, but he didn’t want to deal with whatever weird past lives they had going on. The elves at the Starblaster were weird enough without bringing in lizard people and jolly (or not) green giants.

The young woman working the bar couldn’t have been much older than nineteen. She was short and a little pudgy, about the exact right size for a hug. Her name tag read “Noelle” with a little heart sticker next to it. She gave Kravitz a shy smile as he approached. “Hello,” she said. “What can I get you?”

Kravitz dug into his pocket for his wallet. “Two Redcheek Ciders and an apple brandy neat, please,” he said.

Noelle perked up. “Redcheek? Sounds good!” At his raised eyebrow, she flushed and ducked her head. “Oh, I’m a Redcheek. It’s my family’s brand, is all. So I’m always a little pleased when people order it.” She scurried off to fill Kravitz’s order. Kravitz felt a fond smile on his face. Noelle seemed like a sweet girl. Something about her was familiar, and when she returned with two ciders and Avi’s brandy, he could see why. She flashed to an absolutely tiny woman with pointed ears dressed like a farmgirl from back in the 19th century. Kravitz bit back a sigh. After lizards and green women, pointed ears didn’t seem like such a big deal anymore.

“That’ll be ten-fifty,” Noelle said, placing two bottles and a glass on the counter. She was back to her apple-printed dress and stickered nametag already. Kravitz paid, thanked her, declined her offer of help getting the drinks back to his table, and went back to sit down.

Avi gleefully accepted his brandy and Johann took his cider with a simple thanks. “So, Johann,” Avi said, “what do you think?”

Johann shook his head. “I think Kravitz is right. Asking someone out while they’re on the job is awkward. I’ve had it happen to me before and it’s…kind of the worst?”

Kravitz groaned and put his head in his hands. “I can’t believe you’re still going on about this.”

“Shut up, Kravitz, I’m trying to help you get a boyfriend here.” Avi waved him off and sipped at his brandy. “Oof. That’s not bad.”

“I’m glad you approve,” Kravitz said, rolling his eyes. “And I don’t need help getting a boyfriend. I can ask men out perfectly well by myself.”

Avi held up a finger. “Name one. Name one guy you’ve ever asked out. Ever.”

Kravitz flushed. “There was this guy in Refuge, where I grew up—uh, Isaak—I asked him out, once. Sort of.”

“Sort of?” Johann asked.

“Don’t you start,” Kravitz said, pointing at him accusingly. “You still have to work with me.”

Johann chuckled, and Kravitz wasn’t sure he’d ever heard Johann laugh before. “Sure.”

“Anyway, I did ask Isaak if he wanted to get drinks sometime, but our, uh, schedules didn’t match up ever,” Kravitz continued. He shrugged. “So I asked him out, but it never went anywhere. I think he’s a cop now.”

“My point still stands,” Avi said. “The whole point of asking someone out is to get a boyfriend.” He glanced at Johann. “Or girlfriend, I don’t want to assume.”

Johann shrugged and took a drink. “Either’s good with me.”

A little grin spread over Avi’s face. “Oh. Okay. Cool. Cool cool cool, that’s—that’s cool.”

Kravitz struggled not to laugh. Avi was so damn transparent sometimes. He’d be nice and not tease him about it until later.

“Point is,” Johann continued, “it’s not cool to ask someone out while they’re working.” He paused, looking thoughtfully into his cider. “If they asked you out while they were working it’d probably be fine, though.”

“Um, excuse me?”

Noelle stood next to the booth, back in her farmgirl outfit. “Sir, I think I shortchanged you.”

Kravitz shrugged. “It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine!” Noelle thrust a fistful of change at him. “Here y’are.”

“No, really, it’s fine.” Kravitz gently pushed her hand back. “Toss it in the tip jar if it’s going to mess up your till.”

“But—!” Noelle started to protest, then sighed and offered a smile again. “Well, thanks very much.”

Kravitz opened his mouth to say it was no problem, but his vision kicked in again. Instead of changing back to her present life, though, Noelle became something completely different. Kravitz paled as he saw Noelle’s body become metallic, her very shape change from human (or at least humanoid, with those ears and the way his night was going he couldn’t be sure) to a mismatched robot. There was a plate in the same place her nametag should have been that read “NO-3113” in plain lettering. A small glass window revealed a fuse and a glowing light, and Kravitz was at once drawn to and repulsed by it. He swallowed.

“Sir?” When Noelle spoke, the light pulsed. “Are you alright?”

Kravitz tried a smile, but it felt weak. “Yes, sorry. It’s, um, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

She popped back into existence as a regular human and Kravitz held back his sigh of relief. “If you’re sure.”

“I’m sure.” His smile felt a little more natural now.

Noelle went back to the bar and Avi turned on Kravitz. “So what was that all about?”

“Nothing. Look, Avi—”

“Are you, like, scared of girls or something?” Johann asked.

Kravitz sputtered. “Scared of—no! Of course not! Why would I—”

“Just ‘cuz, like.” Johann shrugged. “Every time you’ve talked to a girl tonight you’ve gotten weird about it. Which is weird because you’re not like this at rehearsal.”

Nobody at rehearsal had ever turned into a lizard or a robot, but Kravitz could hardly say that. “Look,” he said, standing up. “I think I’m just going to go.” He held up a hand when Avi started to protest. “I think I’m just tired. It’s messing with my brain.”

Avi still looked unsure, but he nodded. “Okay. If you think that’s best. See you tomorrow?”

Kravitz shook his head. “No rehearsal for a couple days. Text me, though, alright? Sorry about all this.”

He managed to keep it together until he got out of the pub. Then he ran down the sidewalk towards his apartment as fast as he could, putting as much distance between himself and whatever the hell had just happened as possible.


	4. Panic! at the Café

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz finds himself back at the Starblaster, and things go pretty well except for the fact that he can't turn his sight off and he's seeing actual, literal monsters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: this chapter contains a character having a panic attack as written by someone who's never had a panic attack before. If that type of content is upsetting to you, please let me know and we can work something out. I apologise in advance if it's inaccurate. It's not my intention to upset or offend anyone.
> 
> Also: mild body horror? I'm not sure if this counts as that but just a quick warning for safety's sake, yeah?

_He was drowning but he wasn’t dying. Every time he thrashed and fought his way to the surface, the water twisted around him and yanked him under violently again. He clawed and slashed and screamed with air he didn’t have, he would not be bested by this, he would not lose to this, he would not go down like this—_

Kravitz thrashed awake and sat bolt upright in bed. He was drenched in sweat and breathing hard. The nightmare was gone, but the feeling of it still weighed heavy in his chest. He fumbled with his phone and groaned when it was only two minutes to nine. He was still exhausted, but he wasn’t going to get any more sleep. He might as well get up. Kravitz dragged himself out of bed and around his apartment, trying to force himself to wake up with a shower. It didn’t work.

There was no rehearsal today, so he threw on some casual clothes—a soft grey button-down shirt and black jeans. Normally, Kravitz wore contact lenses, but today he was tired and couldn’t be bothered, so he threw on his thick-rimmed glasses instead. He got halfway through setting up the coffeemaker when he remembered that it didn’t work. Kravitz sighed. Nothing was going to go right for him today, it seemed.

Kravitz tied his shoes and locked the apartment behind him. There was no way he was starting the day without coffee, even if it was shitty convenience store coffee, not after the nightmare he’d had. He suppressed a shudder as he remembered the feeling of the water against his skin. It hadn’t even been like real water, more like oil, black oil with sharp ribbons of colour bleeding through it. If he hadn’t already wrapped Aunt Paloma’s dream interpretation book, he might have looked through it, though he could probably guess what it would say. Something about fear holding him back, more likely than not. Almost laughable, honestly. Kravitz wasn’t afraid of much, and he was pretty damn good at hiding it when he was.

His thoughts drifted to the night before, to the very clearly nonhuman people he’d met in Hogsbottom. He shoved the thoughts to the back of his mind. He’d had a long day, he’d been tired, he’d been drinking. Never mind that he hadn’t even gotten his drink when he met Carey and Killian, or that he’d only had about half a cider when Noelle turned into—whatever he thought she’d turned into. It hadn’t happened. It couldn’t have happened. There was just something wrong with his sight, that was all.

He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn’t realise where he was until he looked up and saw the rocket ship sign. Kravitz swallowed. He hadn’t meant to come back here. He’d meant to go to his usual chain coffee place.

But, well. He was here anyway.

Kravitz felt the now-familiar tug on his soul as soon as he opened the door. Even though he’d only been in the Starblaster Café once, walking inside felt like coming home, just like walking into the Bureau of Books had the day before. It was rustic, with gorgeous wooden furniture to match the Bureau’s, wood flooring and paneled walls, and chalkboard signs hanging over the cashier’s counter. It felt like the place had existed for a hundred years, even though the building itself couldn’t possibly be more than a few years old. It was a testament, Kravitz supposed, to the overall atmosphere and ambiance of the Starblaster. And it worked pretty well.

A strange chime sounded. Kravitz blinked, and when he opened his eyes everything seemed like it was slightly out of focus. He blinked a few more times, and his surroundings slowly refocused. Taking a deep breath and trying not to think about it, he walked towards the cashier.

Magnus was behind the counter when Kravitz approached, already looking like his past self. “Morning!” he boomed. Kravitz got the impression that Magnus’s only volume was ‘loud.’ “What do you want?” Magnus paused. “Wait, no, that came out wrong. What’ll you have?”

Despite himself, Kravitz felt a smile tug at his mouth. “No, it’s fine. I knew what you meant. Medium coffee, please. And one of those…things.” He pointed at a pastry in the display case as his stomach reminded him that he’d been up for an hour and hadn’t eaten yet. Nothing in the glass case was labelled, so he didn’t know what they were called.

Magnus crouched to peer into the case from the other side. Kravitz tried not to think about how ridiculous he felt ordering baked goods from a man in full plate armor. Another chime sounded, and now Magnus was in normal clothes, but still the scarred behemoth he was in his armor. “The little jammy looking one, right? It’s got nuts in it; you don’t have any allergies, do you?” Kravitz shook his head. “Cool.” Magnus stood up and punched Kravitz’s order in. “That’ll be three dollars.”

Kravitz fished out his change and nearly dropped it on the counter when Taako sauntered out from the back. He was carrying a tray of squares, and he perked up when he saw Kravitz. “Oh, hey, it’s you,” he said.

Kravitz swallowed. “Yes.” He willed himself not to say anything stupid, even though Taako looked like an elf again. “I’m Kravitz.”

“Yeah, I know.” Taako put the tray down and leaned against the glass case, an easy, casual grin showing off the adorable gap in his front teeth. “I’m Taako. You know, from TV?”

Kravitz blinked. “No, I—”

“You were on TV _one time_ , Taako,” Magnus complained, pushing him out of the way to get Kravitz’s Danish.

Taako stuck his tongue out at Magnus. “You’re just mad you were sick the day they were filming our episode of Neverwinter Eats.” He turned his winning smile back to Kravitz. “You ever watch that show?”

“I, ah, don’t have cable,” Kravitz explained. He took his coffee and the paper bag with his pastry from Magnus. “Thank you.”

“No cable? That sucks.” Taako leaned forward across the counter. He didn’t seem particularly upset that Kravitz hadn’t seen his fifteen minutes of fame. “Diggin’ the glasses today, handsome.”

Kravitz smiled, clutching his pastry bag tighter. “Thank you.” He wanted to die.

“Yeah, you’ve got that like.” Taako gestured to Kravitz. “You know, that look, like that distinguished shit with a little goth thrown in. Looks good.”

“Thank you.” Kravitz ducked his head. “I like your outfit.”

Taako preened and Kravitz knew he’d said the right thing. He was clearly very proud of his fashion choices. “More men should wear skirts,” he said, smoothing his down. “They’re comfy as hell.”

Kravitz’s smile widened a fraction. “I’m not sure how many men could pull it off as well as you.”

Taako leaned on the counter and winked. “I don’t know, you look like you’ve got steady hands. I think you’d do a pretty good job.”

Kravitz sputtered. “That—that’s not what I—um—”

Taako laughed and moved back, taking up the tray again. “Enjoy your pastry, my man.”

“R-right.” Kravitz turned and scurried towards a table. Taako was going to be the absolute death of him.

Behind him, he heard Magnus laugh. “Steady hands, Taako? Really?”

“Shut up,” Taako said. “Let’s see you flirt better with a big dumb beef boy breathing down your neck the whole time.”

“I backed off,” Magnus protested. “Gave you some space.”

Kravitz shut out the rest of the conversation and focused on his breakfast. Clearly, Taako was just being facetious. He hadn’t actually been flirting with Kravitz. Right?

He snuck a peek at the counter. Taako had disappeared into the back again, and Magnus was whistling as he wiped the counter down. Kravitz couldn’t help but give a small sigh of relief. Taako must have been very important to him in his past life if he was having this kind of reaction.

There was still something a little off, though. Kravitz squinted at Magnus to make sure, and yes, he definitely still had his scars. Normally, when Kravitz was seeing into someone’s past life, he only saw it for a few seconds and then it was gone. And it never split itself like it was now, where he saw Magnus himself as he was before, but in completely normal, modern clothes. Even Taako, now that he thought about it, was wearing his Starblaster apron rather than his Sizzle It Up With Taako one, but he’d definitely still had pointed ears. It was completely unprecedented, and Kravitz didn’t know what to make of it. Anxiety bubbled in his stomach and he downed the rest of his coffee, hoping to drown it. It didn’t work.

“Need a refill, handsome?”

Kravitz jumped at Taako’s voice. He hadn’t even realised he was there. Taako laughed, leaning on the edge of the table. “Sorry, bubelah, didn’t mean to scare you.”

“No, it’s fine.” Kravitz sat up a little straighter and didn’t stare at Taako’s ears. He made eye contact and smiled. “I didn’t see you there.”

“Didn’t see all this?” Taako gestured to himself. “What a shame.”

Kravitz laughed. “Well. I see you _now_.”

Taako’s grin widened a bit, and it softened his face. Kravitz felt his heart pull towards him even stronger. “So how about that refill?” Taako held out a coffee pot. “On the house.”

“Oh, no, it’s fine, I couldn’t ask you to—”

Taako waved off Kravitz’s protests. “Nah, it’s fine. Mango didn’t tell you, but you get a free refill if you buy coffee and a pastry on Fridays.” He winked. “Good thing you stuck around, huh?”

Kravitz felt his face burn. “Y-yeah, guess so.” His accent started to thicken, and he swallowed. He _hated_ when his accent came out. Thankfully, Taako didn’t comment on it, instead leaning just a little too close into Kravitz’s personal space to pour his refill. “Thank you,” Kravitz said politely, face still flushed as Taako moved away.

Taako gave him a little half-smirk. “No problem.” He inspected his nails, perfectly manicured like the rest of him. “So you, uh, new to the area? I haven’t seen you around here much.”

Kravitz sat up a little straighter. “Oh, uh, no, I’ve lived in this part of Neverwinter for a few years now. I just hadn’t come across the Starblaster or the Bureau before.”

Taako hummed in acknowledgement, still studying Kravitz’s face. “Yeah, we’ve only been around a little while ourselves. Well, y’know, me and Lup—that’s my sister, she’s the one who looks like me only slightly less gorgeous—and Mags and Merle and Bluejeans, we’ve only been here for a bit, but Dav’s pretty much always been here, and Lucretia too.” He paused. “You…you’ve met everyone already, yeah?”

“Briefly.” Kravitz glanced around the café and what he could see of the bookstore from his vantage point. “Who’s Bluejeans?”

“Barold.” Taako rolled his eyes and pointed at two people wearing identical red robes. Kravitz blinked. They weren’t actually wearing red robes; that had to be his sight acting up again. Taako seemed to be pointing to the one on the right, the slightly shorter, more heavyset one. Kravitz couldn’t see much in the way of details about either of them, since they both had their hoods pulled up. But he’d seen Lup in a red robe the day before, so he assumed that she was the other person. “Barry J. Bluejeans,” Taako said. “The J stands for Jorts.”

Kravitz looked at him with horror. “That’s not… _really_ his name, is it?”

“Nah, it’s Hallwinter, but we’ve all been calling him Bluejeans for so long that it might as well be his actual name.” Taako grimaced. “God, _look_ at them. They’re so cutesy together.” It might have looked more cutesy to Kravitz if he could see anything other than robes, but they were leaning into each others’ sides, arms around each others’ waists.

“I think they look sweet,” Kravitz said.

Taako glanced down at him. “That’s cuz you’re not related to one of them.” He turned back towards the bookstore. “Hey, get a room, guys!” he hollered.

Kravitz frantically shushed him as one—the one he’d established as Lup—turned towards them.

She didn’t have a face.

She didn’t have any sort of body or form at all. Everything was still a little obscured by her hood, but it was clear that there was absolutely nothing behind it. The robe draped itself down in a way it wouldn’t across someone with shoulders, and sticking out of the ends were two skeletal hands. Lup turned to Taako, raised one bony hand, and flipped him off.

Kravitz scrambled to his feet, his chair clattering to the floor. Taako turned to look at him, and dimly Kravitz heard him ask what was wrong. Barry had turned to look at them, too, and like Lup he had nothing past the robe, just two skeleton hands. Kravitz’s breath turned shallow and there was a pounding in his ears. The world seemed to move in slow motion, and Kravitz couldn’t move, couldn’t even blink, couldn’t focus on anything other than the two things— _litches_ , his brain supplied him with—across the room from him. He watched in horror as they became human again, skin knitting itself across their faces, their hoods falling away, solidity forming under the folds of their robes. They were staring at him, now, concern in their eyes.

He stumbled back, bumping into the wall. Kravitz’s hands clutched at it, needing something to hold onto. He wanted to scream, wanted something to get him out of whatever was happening, but he had no voice.

Hands landed on his waist, and he heard a voice say, as if from far away, “That’s as high as I can reach.” Then the same voice came through again, asking if he needed to leave, reminding him to breathe, telling him that it would pass. “There you go, hey, you’re doing great. You want to sit down?” Kravitz nodded. “Okay then.” He was guided to a seat as his awareness of the world slowly started to come back to him. The hands and voice belonged to Merle, and Kravitz focused on him first. Flowers in his beard, eyepatch on his face, a Kenny Chesney tour shirt, a wooden prosthetic arm. He couldn’t remember if that belonged to this Merle or the old one. “There you go, just breathe,” Merle said. His voice was surprisingly gentle, at least gentler than the day before. “It’s okay. It’ll be over soon. There’s nothing here you need to be afraid of. Just a coffee shop and bookstore. How’re you doing?”

Shakily, Kravitz raised a hand and gave Merle a thumbs up. “I think—” His voice cracked and his full accent came out. “I think I’m okay,” he said.

Merle glanced over his shoulder. “Hey Dav, can you get some water or something for this guy?”

“On it,” a voice said, but Kravitz could really only focus on one thing at a time right now so he didn’t see who it belonged to.

Another hand laid itself on his shoulder. “Hey.” It was Taako’s voice. “What happened?”

Kravitz swallowed. He’d never had a reaction that bad before. “I’m not sure.” How could he say _I think your sister and her boyfriend are—or were—some kind of ghost demons_?

Merle moved away to take a glass of water from someone, which he then handed to Kravitz. “You got a history of panic attacks?” Kravitz shook his head. “Huh. You’re lucky Taako recognised it.”

“Yeah, lucky,” Taako mumbled. “Look, uh, if I did something that triggered it, I’m sorry.”

Kravitz shook his head. “No, it wasn’t you.” He paused. “I don’t know what triggered it,” he lied, “but I know it wasn’t you.” He looked at Merle with a weak smile. “Thank you.”

Merle waved him off and stepped back. “Ehh, wasn’t much. Taako’s who you should thank; he’s the one who went running across the store to get me.”

Taako shrugged when Kravitz looked up at him. “Merle’s got medical experience. I figured he’d have a better idea what to do than me.”

“Still, thank you. Both of you.” Kravitz took a deep breath and let it out slow before looking at the rest of his surroundings. They were in a corner of the Starblaster, him and Merle and Taako. Davenport had left after handing off the water to Merle and was busy at the counter. There were only a few customers in the café, and none near where they were. Magnus was wiping down a table nearby, keeping an eye on the three of them. And Barry and Lup were standing just to the side, holding hands and watching worriedly. Kravitz swallowed and willed himself to stay calm. Neither of them were changing, even Barry, who he’d seen in more forms than anyone else he’d ever met. Lup still looked exactly like Taako but without the hair net, including the elf ears. Barry was just a guy in glasses and jeans.

Lup wandered towards them, and Kravitz bit the inside of his cheek, trying to focus on the pain in order to keep from panicking again. “You good?” she asked. Kravitz nodded. He didn’t trust himself to actually speak to her, not so soon after watching her grow an entire body. “You looked at me and Barry and then looked like you were gonna pass out.”

He shrugged. “Just…one of those things that happens sometimes, I suppose.” He’d finally managed to get his accent under control again, but he slipped at the end. “I should…I think I should go.”

“Hey, hold on.” Taako’s hand squeezed his shoulder. “You sure you’re okay?”

Kravitz inclined his head. “Yes. There shouldn’t be any more issues, I don’t think.”

Merle backed off, scratching at his shoulder with his wooden hand. “Well, if you say so, then I believe you.”

“Thank you.” Kravitz offered a weak smile. “And sorry about your arm.”

“My arm?” Merle looked down at his prosthetic, which Kravitz could see now was an actual prosthetic, and not made of wood. He laughed. “What’re you sorry for? It’s not your fault.”

He was right, it wasn’t. Kravitz didn’t know why he’d said that. “Right. Sorry. That was weird to say, I think.”

“A little!” Merle laughed. “See you around.” And he sauntered back to the bookstore half of the building, waving at Davenport as he went. Kravitz frowned after him. His prosthetic was back to wood again. This whole flickering sight thing was going to drive him insane.

“Hey, if you’re going, wait just a second.” Taako disappeared, scurrying into the back. Lup headed towards the counter to relieve Davenport, and Barry went back to the bookstore after giving Kravitz a quick nod. Kravitz took a moment to take a few slow, deep breaths. This was fine. He was fine, just seeing things again. There was something wrong with his sight, that was all. He’d talk to Aunt Paloma about it when he went to see her tomorrow, and everything would work itself out. He’d make sure of it.

Taako reappeared at his elbow as he stood up. In one hand he held a paper coffee cup, in the other a marker. “Give me your hand,” he said. Confused, Kravitz obliged. Taako set the coffee down and grabbed Kravitz’s wrist, scribbling something on it with the marker before taking a step back. “Text me when you get home, okay?” he said. “I think we’d all feel better knowing you got home safe.”

Kravitz was touched, and despite his trepidation felt a smile growing. “Thank you,” he said. It came out quieter than he intended. “This means a lot.”

“It’s no problem, my man,” Taako said, shrugging. “And here.” He handed Kravitz the coffee cup. “Don’t start,” he said when Kravitz opened his mouth to protest. “I already told you, free refills and your other one got cold cuz of all that shit. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth, homes.”

“Well, thank you.” Kravitz’s smile grew, and the warmth from the coffee seemed to spread through him, chasing any lingering anxiety out. “I’ll, uh, see you around, maybe?”

Taako winked. “Hopefully under nicer circumstances, yeah?”

Kravitz ducked his head. “Yes, hopefully. We really must stop meeting like this.”

“Taako!” Davenport appeared at Taako’s hip and started shooing him towards the back. “I pay you to cook, not to flirt! We’re all very glad Kravitz is feeling better but I need you in the kitchen right now!”

“Relax, Dad’nport,” Taako said with a laugh. He winked over his shoulder at Kravitz and headed towards the back, Davenport half-jogging to keep up. Kravitz smiled back and headed out before anything else happened.

Only when he got halfway home did he realise that he had, for all intents and purposes, been given Taako’s phone number.


	5. Apology Accepted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz has a big dumb crush. Avi teases him about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is. Really short? So sorry about that. But the next one is longer and has more Taako (+other IPRE), I promise!

Kravitz fidgeted with his phone, turning it over in his hands. Taako had said to let him know he’d arrived home safely, which probably meant he should text him now. But there was something so nerve wracking about it. There really shouldn’t have been; all Kravitz was doing was shooting off a text saying “hey I’m home,” but also it was _Taako_. The man he’d fallen fast and hard for in two days, who may or may not be an elf, who flirted with him by complimenting his hands and jumped on any excuse to hand him his phone number. Kravitz swallowed. He could do this. He _would_ do this.

_Hey, it’s Kravitz. Just letting you know I got in okay. Thank you again for your help earlier._

And done. Kravitz abandoned his phone on the couch so he wouldn’t keep obsessively checking it and went to the kitchen to make himself a sandwich. After the morning he’d had, he wasn’t too hungry, in fact he was a little nauseous. But all he’d eaten so far was a pastry, and he needed to keep up some kind of regular eating schedule so Aunt Paloma wouldn’t get on his case. He didn’t know how she knew, but somehow she always did.

By the time he brought his sandwich back to the couch to see what was on Netflix, his phone was blinking with new notifications. He snatched it up, too excited to feel embarrassed at his own eagerness.

_thx my dude, glad to hear it_  
_btw do u like macaroni?_  
_*macaroni_  
_*MACARONS_  
_fuckin autocorrect_  
_everybody likes macaroni wtf even is that question_

Kravitz felt a grin widen across his face as he read Taako’s messages. Taako texted like he talked, and it was oddly endearing.

_I do like macarons. And also macaroni, but I think that goes without saying._

_cool, im making some tomorrow morning and im trying to decide what kind of flavours. how u feel abt elderflower?_

_It sure is a thing I have never eaten in my life ever._

_then ur missing out, my man. u gotta come down tomorrow and try one_

_I just might._

Kravitz stared at his phone, sandwich gone and Netflix forgotten. Taako wanted to see him again. And despite all the weirdness surrounding Taako and the Starblaster and the Bureau of Books, Kravitz wanted to see Taako again, too.

His phone buzzed and he jumped to answer it. It was Avi, and he stamped down the disappointed feeling in his gut. Avi was his friend, and that didn’t change just because he had a crush who maybe liked him back.

_hey i got off early 2day. gym?_

Kravitz sent back a quick affirmative and went to grab his gym clothes. A workout sounded like an excellent way to get rid of his leftover nervous energy from everything that had happened in the past few days. It was also an opportunity to apologize to Avi again about the night before.

The gym wasn’t very far from Kravitz’s apartment, which was one reason he’d chosen it. Avi was already there, and he slapped Kravitz on the back as soon as he stepped out of the changeroom. “Hey, there you are! Free weights today?”

Nodding, Kravitz followed him to the weights area. They tended to swap between free weights and machines, spotting each other as necessary. It was sort of nice to have someone to work out with, someone to talk to instead of getting lost in his own head every time he did a workout.

The only problem was that today, Kravitz didn’t know what to say. He knew he needed to apologise for running out on him and Johann the night before, but he wasn’t sure if he should jump right in with that, or lead in with small talk first. Kravitz had never been very good at both apologies and small talk. He was a little lost.

“So listen,” he said at the same time as Avi said “I was—”

They both paused and gestured for the other to go on. Avi laughed. “Nah, go ahead, mine can wait.

Kravitz nodded and took a breath. “I just wanted to apologise again for last night. I didn’t mean to be rude to Carey and Killian, or to abandon you and Johann.”

“No, Kravitz, don’t worry about it, it’s fine,” Avi assured him.

“It’s really not.” Kravitz met Avi’s eyes steadily. “My behaviour was unacceptable. And frankly you should expect better of me.” He turned away to pick some hand weights from the rack. “I can’t explain what brought it on, but I promise it wasn’t to do with any of you.”

Avi’s hand landed heavy on his back. “I told you, don’t worry about it,” he said. Kravitz turned to see him smiling genially at him. “We understood. Sometimes stuff happens. If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine, but if you change your mind you know where to find me.”

Something warm but sour settled in Kravitz’s stomach. Avi was too kind, too forgiving. It probably helped that he hadn’t been on the receiving end of Kravitz’s weird behaviour.

“Thank you,” he said quietly. “That…it means a lot.”

Avi shrugged and picked up a set of ten-pound hand weights. “Don’t sweat the small stuff, that’s what I always say.”

“I have literally never heard you say that ever.”

They settled into a familiar pattern after that, working through their individual routines and chatting about nothing. Avi was good for that, and Kravitz was grateful. Before he met Avi, he didn’t have anyone to be this casual with. He’d left most of his acquaintances back in Refuge when he moved to downtown Neverwinter, and despite how easy technology these days made staying in contact, Kravitz had never been very good at keeping in touch. He still talked to Aunt Paloma every week, of course, but she’d _raised_ him; she was practically his mother. She didn’t count. These days, his contact with Isaak and Ash and the rest of them mostly involved liking their posts on Facebook. Avi was the first person in Neverwinter that Kravitz could rely on as a friend. And he wanted to be sure to cherish that.

“By the way,” Avi said as they wiped down their stations, “is that a _phone number_?”

Kravitz took it back. He was not cherishing Avi ever again. “No.”

“It _is_!” Avi grabbed Kravitz’s wrist, laughing. “Oh man, is it that cute barista’s? You sly dog!”

“He only wanted to make sure I was okay after this morning,” Kravitz protested, yanking his wrist away. “It wasn’t for anything _salacious_.”

“Ooh, busting out the big words.” Avi’s shit eating grin took up half his face. “Someone’s got a thing for the hot barista!”

Kravitz folded his arms. “And someone else has a thing for a violinist that his friend works with, and if he doesn’t keep his mouth shut…well, loose lips and all that.”

Avi’s grin fell off his face and he actually paled a few shades. “You wouldn’t.”

“Go on, Avi,” Kravitz said with a grin, and _god_ it was so good to be on the delivering end of this for once. “So tell me, what _did_ you and Johann get up to after I left so unceremoniously last night?”

“Th-that’s none of your business,” Avi stammered. “We just had a few drinks and went home.”

Kravitz smirked. “Ready to stop teasing me about Taako yet?”

“His name is _Taako_?” Avi said incredulously.

Kravitz blinked. “Did I not tell you that?”

“No! Who the hell names their kid after Mexican food? Or like, food at all?”

“I think it’s becoming a thing.” Kravitz shrugged. “I know a couple who named their son Kale.”

Avi looked horrified. “ _Why_?”

“Who knows?”

Avi shook his head. “Fucking… _kale_. At least tacos are good.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know three (3) separate kids named Kale. They're all white blonde boys in grade 4, so make of that what you will I guess.


	6. Elderflower Macarons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things move forward a little faster than Kravitz was expecting. He can't say he minds, though.
> 
> Also, birds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and by "faster than Kravitz was expecting" I mean "faster than the author was expecting oh god please help me"

There was a large, black bird sitting on the sign for Kravitz’s apartment building when he left. He’d never seen a raven in town before, or in the wild in general. The last time he saw one was back in high school, when Roswell dragged him and Isaak to a bird sanctuary. Back then, he’d thought it was a beautiful bird, but that was all.

This one looked right at him and cawed.

A shiver ran down Kravitz’s spine and he hurried down the street. He tried not to let things like that bother him, but it was difficult to grow up in a house with a literal fortune teller and not become a little superstitious. Ravens and crows had a lot of superstitions surrounding them, and they were highly intelligent, and that combination scared a lot of people. It really wasn’t a big deal. They were just birds, not actual ill omens or harbingers of death.

Kravitz checked his phone again. Yes, he still had time to stop in at the Starblaster before he had to catch his train to Refuge. He’d deliberately left far too early so he’d have lots of time. It was a habit of his from years of walking to school and work, and it definitely had nothing to do with the Starblaster’s cute barista.

There was a line at the café when he got there, and he tried not to sigh impatiently. He had time. It was fine. He wasn’t _just_ here to see Taako; he was here for coffee and some macarons to take to his aunt.

But mostly to see Taako.

It didn’t take very long before he was at the front of the line. Not surprisingly, it wasn’t Taako at the cash, but Davenport, pointed ears and well-groomed moustache and all. Kravitz got the impression that Taako spent most of his time in the kitchen. “Hello,” he said politely. “Is Taako here today?”

Davenport frowned suspiciously at him, then recognition dawned on his face. “Oh, you’re the guy he helped out yesterday. Yeah, he’s here. You gonna buy something?”

He swallowed. “Yes. Sorry. Are there macarons today?”

“Yes, actually. Elderflower. Two bucks each, or half a dozen for ten.” Davenport pointed to the display case, where multicoloured cookies sat stacked up in neat little pyramids.

Kravitz dug out his wallet. “Could I get a half dozen, please? And a medium coffee.”

Davenport rang him through and set about getting his order ready. “Look, if you want to see Taako…he’ll be on break in a few minutes. I’ll send him out then.” He looked up at Kravitz apologetically. “He’s in a rare productive mood. I don’t want to waste it.”

Kravitz smiled. “I wouldn’t want to interrupt his work. Just wanted to say hello.” He wanted to say a lot more than that, but he _did_ still have a schedule to stick to, even if it was looser than usual. He accepted his coffee and macarons with a ‘thank you’ and wandered into the Bureau of Books to browse while he waited for Taako. He had a few minutes, and he’d need something to read on the train anyway.

“Well hey there!” Merle waved up at him. “Glad to see you’re doing alright after yesterday!”

Kravitz ducked his head in deference. “Thanks again for your help.”

“Eh, wasn’t much.” Merle rubbed his nose. “I’ve seen plenty of panic attacks in my time. You learn how to deal with them pretty quick.”

It was strange talking to someone who was wearing an eyepatch that you knew for a fact they didn’t need. “Yes. Well.” Kravitz cleared his throat. “Thank you anyway.”

Merle sauntered off with another wave. “Let me know if you need anything.”

Kravitz would rather ask Lucretia, who was arranging a display near the entrance, but tactfully didn’t say so. Instead he browsed the biography and historical fiction sections, keeping an eye on the time.

Barry appeared at his side the minute he stepped into the graphic novel section. “Need anything?” he asked, clearly trying to not sound overeager and failing.

“Ah, no, thanks, I’m fine.” Barry had a physical form today, but he was still wearing his robe over it. Kravitz’s gut twisted at the sight of it. “Just browsing.”

Barry nodded, but leaned around Kravitz to point out something anyway. “I don’t know if you like superheroes or not, but _Commitment_ is a good title if you do! It’s a short little indie thing; I don’t know if they’re doing a sequel or not but fingers crossed that they will.”

Kravitz shook his head. “Superheroes are…not really my cup of tea.”

“Oh.” Barry looked at the shelf again. “What are you into, then?”

“History, music…I used to be into stories about people fighting monsters.”

“Used to be?” Barry asked. “What happened?”

Kravitz shrugged uncomfortably. _I started seeing monsters in real life, one of which was you, and had an actual panic attack for the first time because of it_ was very much a conversation killer. “Just lost interest.”

“Well, if you’re looking to get into it again,” Barry said, reaching up to grab something higher up, “ _Amnesty_ is a good one. It’s short too, but sometimes a miniseries is nice to get back into something, you know? A nice little done-in-one with sequel potential.”

An arm draped over Kravitz’s shoulder from behind. “Barold, can you leave _one thing_ untouched by your nerd germs?” Taako complained. He grinned up at Kravitz. “Hey there.”

Kravitz had flushed red as soon as Taako appeared. “Hi.”

Barry threw his hands up in exasperation. “It’s my _job_ to get people to buy books, Taako, and he was in _my_ section.”

“ _Nerd germs_ , Bluejeans.”

“Thank you,” Kravitz said, trying to break the argument up before it started, “I’ll go with both.” He took _Amnesty_ and _Commitment_ from Barry and smiled weakly.

“Cool.” Taako practically dragged Kravitz away from Barry. “Bye, Barry.”

“I’m dating your sister!” Barry called after him. “You should be nicer to me or she’ll kick your ass!”

Taako grimaced. “Ugh, I hate when he’s right. So.” He turned to face Kravitz, grinning and leaning against a bookshelf. “You came back to see me.”

Kravitz shrugged. “I was promised elderflower macarons.” He held up the gift bag that now held Aunt Paloma’s gift and the macarons. “I got six.”

“Ooh, you bought the whole half, nice.” Taako flipped his hair over his shoulder. “You’ve got good taste, bubelah.”

“They’re for my aunt,” Kravitz explained. “Today’s her birthday.”

Taako eyed the gift bag. “Guess that explains that. But also you came in to see _me_ , right?”

Kravitz looked away. “Yeah,” he said quietly, “I did.”

The edges of Taako’s grin softened a little, and he stood a little straighter. If Kravitz hadn’t known better, he would’ve thought Taako was actually surprised. “Well yeah, of course you did. I’m _Taako_.”

Kravitz fidgeted. “I…didn’t really think of anything to say, though.”

Taako laughed. Like the rest of him, it was weirdly charming. “How ‘bout I do the talking, then? I’ve always got plenty to say.” Smiling and shaking his head, Kravitz gestured for him to go on. “Cool. Wanna go on a date?”

Kravitz felt his heart stop beating for what felt like a very long time. “Pardon?” he asked, voice cracking in the middle.

“Yeah, y’know, like.” Taako shrugged noncommittally. “A date. Not gonna lie, Krav, you’re hot as hell, and you actually seem like a fun time, so why not? Unless you’re not interested, but, I mean, like I said.” He held out his hands, displaying himself. “I’m _Taako_.”

Kravitz cleared his throat. “Yes, I—yes,” he said, “I was just—surprised by your forwardness.”

“You really shouldn’t be, at this point,” Taako said with a laugh. He was holding himself a little tense still, his shoulders tight. Kravitz didn’t think he’d ever seen Taako nervous before, though admittedly he didn’t have a very large frame of reference.

“I…” Kravitz paused, choosing his words carefully. “I think I’d like to get to know you better, too.” Taako had obviously once been very important to him. He wondered if he could be again. He smiled at Taako, hoping it came off confident but pretty sure it was more shy than anything. “So, yes, I think I would. Like to go on a date, I mean. Yes.”

Taako’s smile could’ve lit an entire city street. Kravitz wanted to kiss him. “Hell yeah, let’s do this thing. I’m telling you right now, though, I don’t do coffee dates. That’s just straight up off the table.”

Kravitz felt like his face would split from smiling so much. “I think I understand why.”

“Good, so long as we’re clear. Hey, do you like—”

A very young voice interrupted him. “Good morning, sir!”

Grumbling, Taako turned to glare at a young, smartly dressed small boy. Kravitz blinked, and what looked like a straight-up _magic wand_ appeared in one hand. “Go away, Agnes, I’m in the middle of something here.”

The boy—ostensibly Agnes—looked at his well-polished shoes sheepishly. “I’m very sorry to interrupt, sir. But I asked Lup where you were and she said ‘he’s probably harassing Barry in the bookstore again and you should go tell him to get back to work.’ Also!” He beamed hopefully up at Taako. “It’s Saturday!”

“Fuck, it is, isn’t it?” Taako sighed dramatically before turning back to Kravitz. “Looks like my time’s up.”

Kravitz shook his head. “No, it’s fine, I understand. You have to get back to work.”

Taako shrugged. “If you call teaching the boy wonder here how to cook working, then sure.”

The boy peered up at Kravitz from behind enormous glasses. “Hello, sir! Are you a friend of Taako’s?”

Kravitz smiled at him, hoping it wasn’t too strained. He’d never been very good with children. “You could say that, yes. My name is Kravitz.”

He looked between the two of them, and a light seemed to turn on in his eyes. “Oh,” he said knowingly. “I see. Don’t worry, I won’t tell Davenport you were skipping work to see your boyfriend, sir.”

“Now hold on a minute,” Taako said, face red.

“I think it’s a little early still for that,” Kravitz added.

“Oh,” the boy said again. He didn’t seem like he believed them. “I’m Angus, sir, Angus McDonald.”

So not Agnes. Kravitz made a mental note.

“Alright, shrimp, get going.” Taako shooed Angus towards the Starblaster. “I’ll be over in a minute.” With a look in his eye that Kravitz wasn’t sure he liked, Angus scampered off. Taako turned back to Kravitz. “Looks like I’m out.”

“I should be going, too.” Kravitz hesitantly reached out to take Taako’s hand. “Text me? About that date?”

Taako’s thousand-watt smile was back, and it warmed Kravitz from the inside out. “Hell yeah. _Hell_ yeah. If you think I’m forgetting about you agreeing to go on a date just because Ango showed up you are _wrong_.”

Kravitz raised Taako’s hand, pressing his lips to it. “I’m looking forward to it,” he said softly.

Taako was staring at him, and he fidgeted, figuring he’d done something wrong. Was that too much? Too fast? He shouldn’t have done it. “Wow,” Taako said, voice cracking just a little. “You’re seriously the whole package, huh?”

Kravitz felt himself blush. “Uh.”

“Nah, I’m into it.” Taako winked and let Kravitz’s hand drop. “Better get going, though. Have fun at your aunt’s.”

“Thank you.” Kravitz watched as Taako sauntered away. Things were happening so _fast_ all of a sudden. But even though he could’ve done without the monsters and the panic attacks, he couldn’t say he regretted it. After all, he’d gotten to meet Taako.

Lucretia smiled at him from behind the counter when he went to check out. “So,” she said conversationally, taking his books from him, “Taako, hm?”

Kravitz looked away in shame, not entirely sure why. “I don’t—”

“Don’t worry, I’m not here to scare you off,” she assured him. “I’m happy for him. It’s been a while since Taako’s been out in the field, so to speak.” She fixed Kravitz with a hard stare. “He deserves to be happy. Don’t you think?”

Kravitz got the vague idea that he was being threatened, but also for some reason that Lucretia was the last person who should be threatening someone over Taako’s happiness. “I do think so,” he said. “I just hope I can help with that.”

Lucretia beamed at him, and he knew he’d said the right thing. “That’ll be twenty-one sixty-nine.”

“NICE!” Magnus shouted from the back room.

As Kravitz left the Bureau of Books, new comics in hand, a loud _caw_ caught his ear. Looking around, he spotted another raven perched on the back of a bench. It looked at him, head tilted, like it was sizing him up for something. Kravitz didn’t move. The longer he stared, the more relaxed he felt. Despite his trepidation earlier, something in him knew that this bird would never harm him.

An alarm sounded and he scrambled for his phone. He only had ten minutes to get to the train station. When he looked up, the raven was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ango McDango is my number one boy
> 
> Also if you're wondering why Barry brings up Commitment and Amnesty but not Dust, I wrote this before Dust had been announced/named. Don't worry, it'll get brought up at some point.


	7. Aunt Paloma

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aunt Paloma is a wonderful woman and Kravitz loves her to pieces, but she can be a little unsettling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *slamming hands on the desk* PALOMA! PALOMA! PALOMA!

Aunt Paloma’s door was unlocked, and Kravitz just let himself in. Roswell had met him at the station and driven him to her house. He’d been glad to see his old friend again, but then they turned into their past self. Kravitz hadn’t needed to know that they used to be a suit of living armor dripping with mud, and apparently a pet bird, but now he knew that. He wasn’t too sure how he felt about it.

“Hello?” he called from the doorway. Kravitz had lived in this house for so long that it felt strange to be a guest in it, but he dutifully took his shoes off at the door before searching out his aunt. The house had barely changed since he’d lived in it. It was small, but well-loved. The smell of freshly baked bread wafted through the house, and Kravitz’s stomach growled. Glass baubles and knickknacks lined shelves and hung from the ceiling. Books about different types of fortune telling sat in piles and on shelves, and various fortune telling implements were scattered around the tiny living room.

Aunt Paloma was in her rocking chair by the window. She stood up when he came in, beaming and holding out her arms for a hug. “Kravitz! There is my boy!”

“It’s good to see you, Auntie,” Kravitz said, crouching to give her a hug. “Happy birthday.”

“Thank you, dear.” She pulled back to look him over appraisingly. “You are not eating properly. I can tell this.”

He scratched the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly. “I’m trying, Auntie, but the new season is coming fast and it’s hard to find time.” It was a poor excuse and they both knew it—Kravitz was busy, but not _that_ busy. Aunt Paloma didn’t call him on it, though. Instead, she ushered him into the kitchen and sat him at the table, pushing scones and bread and other baked goods at him until he caved.

(Not that it took long. Aunt Paloma’s baking was the best. Kravitz decided to keep the opinion that his aunt’s pastries were better than Taako’s to himself.)

She was peering up at him through her round glasses, listening to him talk about work. Suddenly she smiled. “There is something you are not telling me, I think. Something nice.”

He grabbed his teacup and took a too-hot gulp. “No.”

“Kravitz.” Aunt Paloma leaned forward and placed a hand on top of his. “Indulge an old lady. What is his name?”

Hot with embarrassment, Kravitz looked at their hands to avoid eye contact. “Taako.”

“Taako.” She looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully. “Interesting.”

Kravitz squirmed. “I’m…Auntie, there’s something wrong with my sight.”

She looked back at him. “Wrong how?”

“I’m seeing things that can’t possibly be there.” He turned his hand over under hers to grip it tightly. “People keep turning into ghosts and elves and…and monsters. I can’t turn it off and I don’t know what to do.”

Aunt Paloma squeezed his hand. “If that’s what your sight shows, then that’s what it shows. There is nothing wrong with it.” She paused. “Although it does seem like it is growing stronger faster than it should.”

He raised his head to stare at her. “This is _supposed_ to happen?”

“Of course.” She nodded matter-of-factly. “Power like yours grows gradually over time, especially as you are exposed to more people from your past life. Why do you think you saw nothing until you were grown? Did you not feel a pull towards certain people even as a child? Is that not how you became friends with Roswell, Isaak, and Ash?” Kravitz’s stomach twisted. She wasn’t wrong. Aunt Paloma sat back. “Your past sight is a part of you, always has been. Psychic sensitivities like these run in your mother’s family. I have told you this.”

Kravitz frowned. “No you haven’t. I—you never said it’d get worse. And you certainly never said anything about my mother.”

Aunt Paloma tilted her head and blinked. “Really? I thought I did.”

Kravitz didn’t know anything about his parents. Aunt Paloma had always said she raised him because his mother couldn’t, but she didn’t like talking about it. He remembered every single conversation they’d ever had about her, since there were so few. She had absolutely not been brought up at all when they were discussing his sight.

“In any case,” Aunt Paloma continued, “your abilities were always meant to grow and change along with you. That is how psychic powers _work_. If you are seeing elves and ghosts and monsters…” She trailed off with a shrug. “I do not know what sort of lives we used to lead before we had these ones. But they must have been interesting ones, no?”

“That’s an understatement,” Kravitz mumbled. “Auntie, I don’t—how do I turn it off? It won’t go away anymore. And now it’s some kind of hybrid thing. People are walking around looking like fantasy elves in normal, everyday clothes. I went to a pub with friends the other night and the bartender turned into a robot. A _robot_ , Auntie.”

“Hm.” She looked thoughtfully at the ceiling again. “I don’t know what could cause such a thing to happen.”

She was lying. Kravitz wasn’t sure how he knew, but he could tell. “Auntie, please. Is there anything you can give me to go on?”

Aunt Paloma sighed. “If I could, I would. But this is something I cannot tell you. You will have to learn it for yourself. Now come.” She stood and untied her apron. “It _is_ still my birthday, and I was promised lunch at the Davy Lamp by a handsome young conductor.”

~~~

Lunch was fine, even if Kravitz was distracted during it. He’d never really had a problem with people texting him too much, but a few minutes after they ordered his phone started blowing up with texts and photos from Taako, mostly of himself, Lup, and Angus. Aunt Paloma smiled knowingly and told him not to keep his “nice young man” waiting, which was somehow almost worse. He finally caved and started texting back once she’d assured him four times that he wasn’t being rude.

“You seem happy,” she said on the walk back.

He ducked his head. “I’ve known him for two days, Auntie.”

“Still.” She waved airily. “I have not seen you smile like that in a long time.”

She made them tea when they got back, and they ate the macarons he’d brought while they waited for the water to boil. Not for the first time Kravitz wished Aunt Paloma would let him do something nicer than this for her birthday. She didn’t like people to make a fuss over her.

Aunt Paloma placed his favourite teacup (red with gold trim) in front of him. He could see leaves floating in it and he fixed her with a hard look. “Auntie…”

She shrugged. “What? I wanted to read your leaves. Indulge me this once.”

“You say that every time, Auntie.”

“It works every time, does it not?”

She had him there. Kravitz sighed, but dutifully drank his tea, swirled it, and set it upside down to drain. Aunt Paloma picked it up and peered into it, and Kravitz looked away. No matter how many times he saw this part, it was still unsettling.

“If you want to truly understand your powers, you will need assistance,” Aunt Paloma said, her voice unnaturally deep and loud. Kravitz looked back at her. Her eyes were glassy, staring unseeingly into his teacup. “Learn what you can about the Raven Queen. She will not seek you out herself. The seven birds are your allies. Trust them.”

Aunt Paloma’s eyes focused again, and she set his teacup in its saucer. “Interesting,” she said, voice back to normal. “I was more expecting something about your beau.”

Anxiety clawed at Kravitz’s stomach. “What’s the Raven Queen?” He remembered the two ravens he’d seen that morning in Neverwinter and a chill ran down his spine.

She shook her head. “I can’t tell you that. You’ll have to find that out yourself.” She reached up and patted his cheek. “But you were always good at research. You will find what you are looking for.” She beamed at him, the corners of her eyes wrinkling. “You will bring your boyfriend to visit me, yes?”

Kravitz coughed. “I—Auntie, we haven’t even gone on a date yet.”

Aunt Paloma shrugged. “ _When_ he is your boyfriend, then. Taako is a nice boy, if both strange and crass.”

He frowned. “You’ve never met him.”

“I am a fortune teller.” She winked. “I know these things.”


	8. Costco

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz meets up with Taako outside of work for once, and also some shady customers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Real Costco! Where All Your Dreams Come True! Got A Deal For You!
> 
> Sorry for how short everything's been lately. I have no excuses, only apologies. Fingers crossed the next chapter will be nice and long.

“Well hey, stud.”

Kravitz turned at Taako’s unmistakeable voice. Taako leaned on the handle of his shopping cart, a flirty smile showing off the gap in his teeth. “Hi,” Kravitz said.

Angus appeared at Taako’s elbow. “Hello, sir!”

“What brings you out to Real Costco?” Taako asked.

Kravitz smiled bemusedly. “Real Costco? As opposed to what, Fake Costco? Fantasy Costco?”

Taako waved him off. “Long story. Not important.”

Kravitz chuckled. “I’m just here for a few things. I like to stock up.”

Nodding, Taako wandered past him to grab a bag of flour the size of Angus. “Yeah, same. I mean, this is all Starblaster shit, but Magnus was stuck doing inventory for the Bureau today so they sent _me_ , Taako from TV, to do the heavy lifting.” He rolled his eyes dramatically at Kravitz. “Can you believe that?”

He watched Taako load the oversized flour bag into his cart. “You seem to be doing a good enough job.”

“Well _yeah_ , I can _do_ it,” Taako huffed. “But these hands were made for baking, not lifting, y’know? Besides, this is supposed to be Magnus’s job.”

Kravitz fell into step beside Taako, Angus trotting along at Taako’s other side. “I’ve been meaning to ask about that. Does Magnus work for the Starblaster or the Bureau?”

“Both, my dude. He does all the heavy lifting, takes care of the Bureau’s jellyfish, does some light security work, goes for all the Starblaster’s grocery runs…except when Lucretia’s got him doing inventory.”

“That’s why you’ve got me today, sir,” Angus piped up. “Many hands make light work!”

“Yeah, yeah. You’ve been spending too much time with Davenport.” Taako was clearly trying to be annoyed, but there wasn’t much actual annoyance under the surface. Kravitz shook his head. He didn’t know what Taako and Angus’s relationship was, but Taako clearly cared for him. He wasn’t going to pry, though. It wasn’t his business.

They made casual small talk while they shopped, and Kravitz had to go back to get three separate items because he’d been so distracted talking to Taako that he forgot them. He would’ve been more embarrassed if Taako didn’t do the same thing.

“So are you doing anything Thursday?” Taako asked casually after sending Angus off for paper towels.

Kravitz’s mind blanked for a moment as he tried to remember what his schedule looked like. “I don’t think so. I have rehearsal, of course, but I ought to be free after that.”

“Excellent.” Taako looked pleased and more than a little smug. “How d’you feel about wine? Also pottery. That’s important too.”

He frowned. “Wine is good, but I’ll admit I don’t know much about pottery.”

Taako shrugged. “You don’t have to. There’s this great little wine and pottery place that just opened up near my apartment. How’s that sound?”

The realisation that Taako was hammering out details for their date—that Taako had, in fact, been serious about going out with Kravitz—hit him like a ton of bricks. “I, ah, right,” he stammered, “of course. That sounds…that sounds good.”

Taako’s grin showed off the gap in his front teeth and Kravitz’s heart glowed. “Hell yeah. I’ll text you the details, but meet me there at eight?”

A pointy wizard’s hat settled itself over Taako’s head, and Kravitz gulped. “Sounds great,” he managed.

Angus came trotting back, arms full of paper towel and beaming. “Cool,” Taako said, taking the paper towels and tossing then in his cart. “Well, that about does it for us.” He tossed a wink over his shoulder at Kravitz. “See you at the Starblaster tomorrow, hot stuff.”

Kravitz gripped the handle of his cart a little tighter. “Of course.”

“Dope. C’mon, li’l man.” Taako sauntered off, and Kravitz had to rub his eyes to make sure he wasn’t imagining Taako’s _very deliberate_ hip sway.

Angus hung back for a moment, looking between Kravitz and Taako. “You know, sir,” he said, “he didn’t actually need paper towel.”

“Ango!”

“Coming, sir!” With a wave over his shoulder at Kravitz, Angus jogged off after Taako. Kravitz watched them go, still trying to parse what exactly had just happened. That Angus kid was more perceptive than Kravitz had given him credit for. He’d have to be careful around him.

Kravitz made it out of Real Costco (he hoped Taako would tell him that story one day) without much incident aside from his cashier. His nametag identified him as Garfield, and he was profoundly disturbing in ways Kravitz wasn’t sure he could ever articulate. Other than that he managed to get his few purchases to the bus stop.

Only when he sat down on the bus stop’s bench did he realise exactly how exhausted he was. It had been a long day—Taako in the morning, being _asked out_ , his aunt, his old friend being either a suit of armor or a bird (he still wasn’t sure which), the trip to Refuge and back, Costco (which was exhausting with or without Taako), a second run-in with Taako…he figured he could be forgiven for collapsing into bed as soon as he got home.

“Oh.”

Kravitz looked up, startled from his thoughts by a man’s voice. Standing in front of him were nearly identical elves, a man and a woman, in nearly identical gaudy outfits, looking at him with nearly identical quizzical expressions. He cleared his throat. “Can I help you?”

“Probably,” the woman said, an amused lilt to her voice. “But I think the real question is, can _we_ help _you_?”

“You’re looking for something, right?” the man said, the same lilt to his voice. Kravitz swallowed. Something about these two made his skin crawl. “We specialize in helping people find what they’re looking for.”

Kravitz shook his head, leaning away from them. “No thank you, I don’t—”

“Nonsense,” said the man, leaning forward. “Everyone’s looking for something.”

“It’s not always a specific object,” the woman added, leaning her elbow on the man’s back. “Sometimes it’s information.”  
“Memories.”

“People.”

“Feelings.”

“Answers,” they finished in eerie unison. Kravitz wasn’t sure when it had happened, but they were crowding his personal space, and he was pressed back against the bench. His heart pounded hard, and his hand itched to grab—something, he wasn’t sure what.

“Here,” the woman said, slipping a business card into Kravitz’s shirt pocket. “Look us up if you change your mind.”

“Your bus is here,” the man added, leaning away. “Safe trip.”

“We’ll see you soon.”

Kravitz grabbed his bags and shoved his way onto the bus, willing himself not to look back. By the time he paid for his ride and turned around, they were nowhere to be seen.


	9. Calm Before the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ravens come bearing gifts, bets are made (and lost), and Kravitz knows things he shouldn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey? Hey, Taako? Hi, it's me the author. Could you please stop interrupting my slow burn and making it into a _very fast burn_ by doing dumb shit like calling the guy you just met like three days ago babe? Could you stop? I'm begging you Taako. My crops are dying

_He was kneeling in the middle of a spectral city, on a perfect circle of sapphire. He stood up and looked around, and almost before he had time to process it Taako was running towards him, arms out, and he suddenly remembered how cold his lips were, clamping his hands over his mouth before Taako could reach him. He blew into his cupped hands, apologising and feeling like an idiot. Taako just laughed and Kravitz moved forward, pressing their lips together in a kiss that had been a long time coming, and Kravitz had never wanted anything more in his life—his unlife—as he wanted to just hold Taako and keep him close forever—_

A blaring alarm rudely woke Kravitz, and he flailed for his phone, cursing. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and stretched. He didn’t remember the last time he’d woken up feeling so refreshed. Maybe it was just his dream—he didn’t remember it, but he remembered how safe and loved it had made him feel.

He opened his curtains after getting dressed (black dress pants, black vest, dark red dress shirt, no tie today) and started at the sight of two ravens sitting on the railing of his fire escape. One cawed loudly in what Kravitz would assume was a greeting if he didn’t know better. The other flapped over to drop something on the windowsill, then flew back to join its friend. Cautiously, Kravitz opened the window to see that it had left a spool of dark blue thread with a needle jabbed through the side. He looked back at the ravens to see them watching him, tilting their heads occasionally. The one on the left—the one that had dropped off the thread—cawed. Swallowing, Kravitz tentatively reached for the spool and picked it up.

“Ah,” he said. “Thank you?”

Both ravens cawed again before spreading their wings and flying off. He closed his window and deposited the thread on top of his dresser. That had been…weird. He’d read about how smart ravens were, and heard stories of them bringing people gifts, but he’d never experienced it firsthand.

Kravitz pushed the incident to the back of his mind and finished getting ready for the day. He’d have to go to the Starblaster first, of course, and he had plenty of time before rehearsal started. Maybe he’d have time to sit down for a few minutes. That’d be nice.

On his way out the door, a card caught his eye. He’d tossed it on the table while getting undressed the night before so it didn’t go through the wash by accident, but he hadn’t really taken a good look at it. He picked it up and looked it over. The back looked like the back of a playing card, a red, white, and black diamond pattern. The front advertised an establishment called “Wonderland,” apparently. It gave an address, but no hours of operation, and the words “WE HAVE WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING FOR” were scrawled in a gaudy font around the name of the place. There were two names written on it as well: Edward and Lydia. Kravitz wondered if they were the Costco elves. The card didn’t say what Wonderland actually was or what it did. Against his better judgement, Kravitz stuffed it in his pants pocket before he left.

The Starblaster was relatively quiet for this time of day, but the Bureau of Books was booming. There were signs everywhere advertising a book called _Dust_. Kravitz recognised the cover art as being the same as on _Commitment_ and _Amnesty_ , and made a mental note to ask Barry about it later. He’d ended up enjoying both books a lot more than he’d thought he would.

Lup was behind the register today, and the way she grinned at Kravitz told him that she definitely knew about his date with Taako. “Well, well, well,” she said, leaning forward. “I bet I know who _you’re_ here to see.”

He cleared his throat, embarrassed. “Yes. Well. I’m also here to order coffee.”

“Mmhm.” She didn’t seem convinced. “I’ll tell him you’re here. What’ll you have?”

Kravitz ordered and paid, then sat at a table with his coffee and watched the Bureau’s customers. He was a little surprised at how many there were this early on a Monday morning. Maybe a popular book he didn’t know about had just come out or something.

“Oh hey!” Magnus popped up beside him, rag and spray bottle in hand. “I don’t think we ever got formally introduced.” He stuck his hand out. “Magnus Burnsides.”

“Nice to meet you,” Kravitz said politely, shaking Magnus’s hand. “I’m Kravitz.”

“How’s it going?” Magnus asked, turning away slightly to start wiping down the table next to Kravitz’s. “I haven’t really seen you since that one time. With the, uh. Y’know.”

Kravitz tried to think of the last time he actually saw Magnus, and paled slightly when he realised it was the day of his panic attack. “Oh. No, I’m fine. Thank you.”

Magnus nodded. “That’s good. So, uh, you a business guy or what? We’ve all got bets.”

Kravitz gave a somewhat perplexed smile. “Bets?”

“Yeah. I figure you work in an office or something, but Taako says you’ve got rehearsals to go to and Merle’s convinced you’re actually like, some kind of mafia bounty hunter.”

Kravitz actually laughed aloud at that. “If I worked for the mafia, do you really think I’d admit to it?”

Magnus pointed at him. “See, that’s exactly what someone who worked for the mafia would say.”

“I’m a conductor,” Kravitz explained. “I work with the Neverwinter Symphony Orchestra.”

Magnus let out a long, slow whistle. “Fancy. Guess Lup was closest, then. She said you were a musician.”

The bell over the door rang, and Kravitz glanced towards it. A pretty woman walked in, hair pulled back into a loose bun and a sleeveless shirt showing off her buff arms. Kravitz’s immediate first thought upon seeing her was _oh, it’s Magnus’s wife_ , before realising he had no way of knowing that. He glanced up at Magnus to see if he knew her and wound up doing a double take.

Magnus was staring at her like she’d hung the stars, eyes wide, jaw slack, rag twisted in his hands. His eyes followed her as she joined the short line that had formed at the counter. He looked absolutely smitten.

Kravitz cleared his throat. “Someone you know?”

Magnus actually jumped, like he’d completely forgotten about Kravitz. “Uh, no,” he said, dropping his gaze. “She’s just—I haven’t seen her here before, is all.”

“Who?” Taako asked, wandering over and leaning one elbow on Kravitz’s shoulder. He winked down at him. “Morning, babe.”

“No one,” Magnus said immediately, his flush making the scars on his face stand out. “Just—it’s nothing.”

Still half draped over Kravitz, Taako turned and scanned the café. Magnus groaned when his eyes landed on the woman who just walked in. “Oh, her, huh? She’s pretty cute.” Jealousy clawed at Kravitz’s gut, but he stomped it down. It had been an observation, and he wasn’t wrong. She wasn’t Kravitz’s type—he wasn’t into women at all, and his taste was pretty solidly Taako at this point—but she was definitely a handsome woman.

“Pretty cute?” Magnus sputtered in disbelief. “Taako, she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”

Taako raised his eyebrows at him. “Huh.” He looked back at her. “Well, go talk to her.”

Magnus shook his head. “I couldn’t ask her out while I’m working! That’d be weird.”

Kravitz coughed pointedly.

“Fair enough,” Magnus conceded.

Something pulled at Kravitz’s heart, and he wasn’t sure what it was. All he knew was that for some reason, seeing Magnus _not_ with this woman was…wrong, somehow. So he opened his mouth and said “I agree with Taako. You should go talk to her.”

Magnus was already gone, hand extended to shake hers. Taako shook his head. “Fuckin’ nerd,” he sighed. “Normally he just rushes into shit. He must really be into her if he’s actually, y’know, not.” He moved to wrap his arm around Kravitz’s shoulders. “Thanks for coming to see me.”

“Of course.” Taako’s cheek was pressed against the side of Kravitz’s head. “I hear there were bets about me?”

“Just the one,” Taako said, as though that was a normal amount of bets to have about someone. “I figured I’d find that shit our about you on Thursday.” Davenport shouted Taako’s name from the back and he sighed. “Guess it’s back to the grind. You’re off to work too, yeah? Have a good one.” He turned his head and Kravitz felt lips press to his temple. He jolted back and stared up at Taako, face red. Taako winked. “Payback, baby,” he said, and Kravitz remembered yesterday’s kiss to the back of Taako’s hand and smiled shyly.

“What time are you off tonight?” he blurted. When Taako raised both eyebrows at him, he squirmed. “Just, you know. Out of curiosity.”

“Can’t wait until Thursday, huh?” Taako teased. “Well, if you _happen_ to pop by around five, I should be on my way out.” He tucked some of Kravitz’s hair behind his ear. “But for now, I guess we’d better go pretend we’re, like, responsible adults or some shit, yeah?” Kravitz grimaced and Taako laughed. “Hey, I like it just as much as you do, bubelah.”

Kravitz stood, taking Taako’s hand and squeezing it again. “Try not to kill anyone.”

Taako sighed dramatically. “I make no promises.”

~~~

He went back to the Starblaster after hitting the gym with Avi, arriving just in time to catch Taako before he left for the day. Kravitz offered to walk him home, and Taako laughed and told him to at least buy him dinner first. One food truck stop later, Kravitz was standing out front of Taako’s apartment building, deep in discussion about local food trucks. It took Taako getting a text from Lup to make the two of them realise how long they’d been standing there, and Kravitz politely declined Taako’s offer to come inside. He didn’t think anything would happen if he did, but things were still moving a little faster than he was used to. He wanted to slow down just a little bit. Taako hugged him before he left, a real, proper squeeze, and Kravitz practically floated down the street towards his own building.

The two ravens were waiting for Kravitz again, this time on a street sign. They cawed at them a few times, then flew off. Kravitz scratched at the back of his neck. He was certain it was the same two ravens every time. He wasn’t sure if that made things more or less bizarre.

Sticking his hands in his pockets, his fingers caught the edge of the business card he’d unceremoniously shoved there that morning. Kravitz pulled it out to look it over again. The address it gave wasn’t far from where he was, actually. He could at least scope it out.

Turning towards a side street, Kravitz headed off towards Wonderland.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >:3c


	10. Welcome to Wonderland

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz goes to Wonderland.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Every single one of you that commented on the last chapter with some variation of "KRAVITZ NO" have extended my life by 1000 years

Wonderland was…a lot duller than Kravitz had expected.

He checked the card to make sure he was at the right place, and yes, he was. He just hadn’t expected a rundown old building that looked like six separate fire hazards and an eviction notice given life. It was squashed between abandoned shops with dust-covered lease signs in the windows. The building was covered in graffiti, and there were no signs indicating this was Wonderland at all. Kravitz shuffled closer. Maybe they’d moved? The Costco elves could have given him outdated information.

But he’d come all this way, and it couldn’t hurt to at least stick his head in. After all, there weren’t any signs saying the building was condemned or anything, and this specific storefront didn’t have a “for lease” sign on it. And it wasn’t like he had any other leads.

Steeling himself, Kravitz pushed the door open and stepped inside. It was nearly pitch black, and the door swung shut behind him, cutting off what little light there was. Before he had time to panic and run off, lights flared to life overhead, nearly blinding him. He threw his arms up to protect his face, and when he could see clearly again, his jaw dropped.

Wonderland was much, _much_ bigger than how it looked from the outside. He didn’t know how he could have ever missed it. A raised catwalk emerged from black curtains at the back of the room, stopping not far from the entrance. Everything was in clean black and white and neon colours. Catchy eighties synthpop started blaring from overhead speakers, and the Costco elves appeared from behind the curtain, strutting down the catwalk to the beat. If Kravitz hadn’t been confused and panicked out of his wits, he might’ve been impressed.

The elves reached the end of their routine, standing above Kravitz on the catwalk. He clapped politely, unsure how he was supposed to react.  
The female twin laughed. “Oh, thank you,” she said, giving a low, dramatic bow. “We do our best.”

“Welcome to Wonderland,” the man said. He pointed to his twin. “She’s Lydia.”

“And he’s Edward,” Lydia said, pointing to her twin.

Kravitz waved awkwardly. “I’m Kravitz.”

“Oh, we know,” Edward said airily. “Kravitz McCallister, conductor of the Neverwinter Symphony Orchestra. You’re something of a well-known figure in our field.”

“And what field is that?” Kravitz asked, trying not to sound nervous.

Lydia winked. “Anyway, Kravitz, we have business to discuss, yes? You have something you’re looking for, and we can help you find it.”

There was something off about Edward and Lydia, and it wasn’t just that they were elves. Kravitz couldn’t place what it was, but it made him uneasy. The longer he looked at them, the stronger he felt that he should really just leave.

He swallowed. No. He needed answers, and Wonderland was his only lead. “Do we discuss business on the catwalk, or…?”

Edward laughed. “No, don’t be ridiculous.” He raised a hand in the air and snapped, and lights flared, blinding and disorienting Kravitz. When he could see again, the catwalk was lowering into the floor and what looked like a diner booth had flipped out of the wall. Edward gestured towards it. “Have a seat.”

Kravitz cautiously slid into the booth, eyeing the twins warily. They sat across from him, half draped across each other. Edward had a gleam to his eyes that Kravitz didn’t like, and Lydia looked like she was sizing him up for something. He sat up straight and tried not to look nervous. “So. You two are information dealers?”

“You could say that,” Edward said. “We acquire information and trade it with people who want it.”

“We don’t _just_ deal in information, though,” Lydia added. “If someone needs a specific object, or to find a person, or anything like that, we can find it for them. For the right price, of course.”

“We’re particularly good finders,” Edward said cheerfully. “Natural born Hufflepuffs.”

Lydia shoved him, laughing. “Nerd.”

Kravitz cleared his throat. “And about what percent of this is…legal?”

“Almost none,” Lydia said with a shrug. “But hey, we’ve got better results than Google for what _you’re_ looking for.”

“And I suppose you already know what that is?”

Edward and Lydia glanced at each other. “Not exactly,” Edward said. “But everyone’s looking for something. And you wouldn’t be here if you weren’t looking for something hard to find.”

“Here’s how things work.” Edward spread his hands across the table, fanning out a deck of cards that Kravitz was sure hadn’t been there before. “Here in Wonderland, everything is decided from luck of the cards. Are you a gambling man, Kravitz?”

Kravitz felt something sour in the pit of his stomach. He’d always been a sucker for games of chance. The trouble was that he’d also never been very good at them, and these two were clearly some kind of stage magicians. What chance did he have?

“It’s just simple high card draw.” Lydia swiped a card from the deck and held it up—ace of hearts. “Ace is high. Whoever gets the highest card gets something from the loser. You can bet whatever you like, but don’t bet anything you aren’t prepared to lose.” She winked.

“So, Kravitz, what do you say?” Edward gathered the cards and shuffled them, Lydia flicking her ace back into the pile as he did. “Ready for some answers?”

He could back out. He could just get up and leave right now, pretend none of this had happened, go looking for wiki articles about the Raven Queen or ancient library books about the seven birds. Kravitz’s hands gripped the edge of his seat, palms sweating.

Against his better judgement, he sat up straighter, folded his hands on the table, and nodded decisively. “Alright. Who deals first?”

“Oh, _we_ do, silly.” Edward continued shuffling. “Let’s get started. What are you looking for?”

“The Raven Queen,” Kravitz said.

Edward froze, a few cards falling from his hands and into his lap. Lydia looked suddenly worried, too, her eyes wide and her hands tensing into fists. They recovered almost immediately, at the same time, Edward going for his dropped cards while Lydia smiled at Kravitz. “Well. You’ll be happy to know we’re _experts_ on that particular little subject.”

None of this was making Kravitz regret his decision any less.

“However,” Edward continued, still shuffling, “that’s going to require some higher quality bets.”

“You’ll lay your bet on the table, and then we’ll tell you how many questions we’ll answer based on your bet,” Lydia said. “We have to answer truthfully, and if we don’t know the answer you get another free question. Once you bet something, you can’t bet anything smaller than your previous bet, and you can never bet the same thing twice. The same rules don’t apply to us, of course, or you’d never get any information out of us.”

“That hardly seems fair,” Kravitz protested.

“The Queen of Death is a…touchy subject around here.” Edward shrugged, looking fully uncomfortable for the first time since Kravitz had seen him. He tried not to let it show that he’d just learned something about the Raven Queen that he hadn’t known before. The Queen of Death? “Special rules apply.”

“So.” Lydia gestured to the table. “What’ll you offer up?”

Kravitz patted himself down. He didn’t have much aside from his wallet, and even then there wasn’t a lot of cash in it. But it was a start, anyway. He tossed down the single five-dollar bill he had, along with a handful of change.

Edward raised an eyebrow. “That’s it? You struck me as the ‘go big or go home’ type.”

“I’m not new to gambling,” Kravitz pointed out. “You never start out big. Especially with the escalating bet rules you two set up for me.”

Lydia shrugged. “Fair enough. But for that, you only get one question.”

Edward fanned the cards out again. “Go ahead.”

Heart pounding in his ears, Kravitz reached out and snatched a card at random, bringing it to his chest so he could look at it without the other two seeing. It was the ten of clubs. He relaxed a little. There was a low chance of the other two getting a face card or an ace, and even if they did, it was only five dollars and change.

Edward languidly picked a card and looked at it. Lydia peeked at it over his shoulder and giggled. “Well, tough luck for your first round,” she said as Edward showed Kravitz his card. Kravitz’s heart sank. Edward had drawn a king.

“Too bad,” Edward said, scooping up the cash as Lydia gathered the cards and started shuffling them again. “Care to give it another go?”

Kravitz fidgeted. On the one hand, he hadn’t lost much. On the other, he knew how this worked. How much could he afford to lose in pursuit of knowledge he might still never win? “I don’t have any more cash,” he said.

Lydia shrugged. “What else have you got? We’re not really all that interested in money.”

“We’ll take it, though,” Edward added.

Sighing and resigning himself to losing again, Kravitz tossed his phone on the table. Edward’s eyes lit up and Lydia nudged him. “It’s an alright bet,” she said. “Two questions.”

“Now hold on,” Kravitz protested. “Five dollars got me one question, and I can assure you I paid more than five dollars for this phone. Besides.” He pointed at Edward, and the greed that had lit up his face as soon as Kravitz had offered his phone. “It’s clearly worth more to you than two questions.”

Edward looked guiltily at Lydia. “It’s _new_. We haven’t gotten new phones in _months_.”

She sighed. “Fine. Three questions.” She held up a hand as Kravitz started to protest again. “Three questions, and if the next words out of your mouth aren’t ‘thanks, Lydia, that’s very generous of you’ then it’s one question.”

Kravitz scowled. “Thanks, Lydia, that’s very generous of you.”

Lydia preened. “I know.” She held out the cards for him. “Go ahead and draw.”

Cursing them both out in his head, Kravitz snatched a card from her hands. A sick feeling washed over him as he brought it closer, and he had to close his eyes for a moment. Then it was gone, and he was blinking at the six of diamonds in his hand.

Kravitz had never had a very good poker face, but he struggled to look neutral as Lydia drew a card. She, however, did not bother staying neutral. “Fuck!” she said, glaring at the card like it had personally slighted her. She threw the card down. It was the two of spades.

Edward looked between the card and Kravitz’s phone, crestfallen. “Well, beans,” he sighed. “That was a nice looking phone.”

Hands shaking, Kravitz put his six down and took back his phone. “A deal’s a deal,” he said. “Three questions.”

Lydia sighed and leaned back in the booth, waving vaguely at him. “Congratulations,” she said flatly. “Ask away.”

He sat up straighter. “Who is the Raven Queen?”

“Starting off with the big questions, huh?” Edward sighed and stretched. “The Raven Queen is an old-ass goddess from various mythologies. Next.”

Kravitz blinked. “What, that’s it? That’s hardly an answer.”

“You asked who she is, and we told you.” Edward shrugged. “You want better answers, ask better questions.”

Kravitz thought for a moment. A goddess. It was a start. “What kind of goddess was she?”

“ _Is_ ,” Lydia corrected. “She’s the goddess of the balance between life and death, and in some myths queen of the afterlife.”

His blood ran cold. A death goddess? His past sight was connected to a _death goddess_?

“Well? Hurry up,” Lydia said. “You’ve got one more question left, and I’m starting to get bored.”

“I’m thinking,” he said, leaning forward to rest his arms on the table. The queen of the afterlife. Holy shit. “What…what connection does she have to the seven birds?” he asked.

Edward and Lydia looked at each other, confused. “None?” Edward said. “At least, none that _we’ve_ heard of.”

“In all the stories about her, she has _two_ raven attendants, not seven,” Lydia added. “Unless that’s a reference to her bounty hunters, but I don’t think so.”  
“Bounty hunters?” Kravitz repeated weakly.

Edward wagged his finger condescendingly. “Ah, that’s three! You want more answers, you have to win them.”

“This is boring now,” Lydia declared. She snapped her fingers and Wonderland’s bright lights dimmed until all Kravitz could see was their booth, illuminated by a single spotlight coming from somewhere in the inky darkness. The table folded itself up into the wall with a snap, and Kravitz felt suddenly very vulnerable. The harsh lighting cast strange shadows across the elves’ faces, and the feeling that something was off about them intensified. “Listen. You have something we want, and we have information you want. Let’s lay all our cards on the table, so to speak.”

Kravitz’s vision went fuzzy for a moment, and when it cleared, Edward and Lydia were gone. Sitting in their places were two black-robed figures with hoods drawn up over their faces. The figures didn’t seem to have any real form under the robes, and Kravitz came to the bone-chilling realisation that they had no flesh on the hands coming from their sleeves.

They were like Lup and Barry.

Ghost-demons.

Litches.

“What the _hell_ do you want?” Kravitz asked hoarsely.

The one on the left—Edward—tossed his head as though flipping stray bangs from his face. “You think you’re the only one around here with psychic abilities? Lydia here can sniff them out a mile away.”

Lydia—the one on the right—lounged against the back of the seat. “So what’s your flavour? Telepathy? Telekinesis? Divination. We haven’t met a clairvoyant in a while; that might be fun.”

Kravitz’s hands were cold. _Psychic_ litch-demons. “I—it’s a form of retrocognition.”

Edward sat up straighter. “Oo, retrocog. Real catch with this one, Lydia.”

The two of them flickered between litch and elf, like a dying light bulb, and Kravitz pressed back against the seat, away from them. He didn’t know if it was just his ability acting up or if the litches were doing this to him themselves.

“Here’s the thing.” Lydia pointed a bony finger at him. “You want some stuff from us, but here in Wonderland, everything has a price. Sometimes, that price is money.”

“Or things.”

“Or favours.”

“Or games.”

“In your case, though…” Lydia spread her fingers wide and wiggled them at him. “We want your powers.”

Kravitz balked. “I don’t…I don’t think that’s possible.”

“Oh, please,” Edward scoffed. “Lydia can _find_ people with psychic abilities. I can _take_ them.” Somehow, they had gotten into Kravitz’s space without him realising it again, and they crowded him into a corner of the booth. “Your powers probably cause you no shortage of trouble. You want to understand them. Why _understand_ them when you could just…get rid of them?

“It’s a win-win, right?” Lydia said. “We get more powers, and you get rid of the powers that you don’t want.”

“I came here for information,” Kravitz croaked.

“And you’ll get that, too.” Edward held out his hand. “I can’t make the trade if you don’t say yes, though. Come on, Kravitz. What do you say?”

Kravitz shut his eyes, took a deep breath, and steadied himself. When his eyes opened again, they were steely. “No.”

They paused. “Pardon?”

“I said no.” He shoved at them. “Get away from me.” When they didn’t move, he reached out a hand and grabbed something from the air beside him. “I _said_ , get away from me!”

Something materialized in his hand and he swung it at them. The litches backed off, and Kravitz stood, clutching the scythe that had appeared out of nowhere with both hands. He had no idea where it had come from, but he wasn’t going to turn down a weapon to use against elf ghosts.

“What the _fuck_ ,” Edward shouted. “Are you _joking_?”

“You’re one of the Raven Queen’s bounty hunters, aren’t you?” Lydia demanded. “Was this all some kind of weird _test_?”

“I genuinely have no idea what the hell you’re talking about,” Kravitz said, “but if you don’t back the fuck off I’m sure I can figure out how to use this thing.” He swung it in front of himself a few times experimentally. On the third pass, there was a horrible ripping sound and the scythe cut a tear through the air. A hole opened up in front of Kravitz and without thinking he dove through it.

He tumbled out the other side onto tiled floor, his scythe disappearing at the same time as the hole closed up behind him. Pushing himself into a sitting position, Kravitz looked around. He was in a kitchen. Just…a completely normal kitchen. It was a little cramped, and kind of messy, but it looked like a normal kitchen that was owned by a normal person who was in no way, shape, or form a terrifying ghost monster from a previous life.

Then he heard a horrifyingly familiar voice. “Hello? Hey, if there’s anyone out there, I’ll warn you: I’ve got a fucking baseball bat.”

Kravitz didn’t even have time to pull himself to his feet before Taako rounded the corner into the kitchen, bat raised high. “Krav?” he asked. “What the _fuck_?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I introduced all these plot points and now I don't know what I'm doing with them please save me


	11. One In the Fucking Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz explains.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  ~~hhhh oh god I hope this lives up to the hype now I'm nervous~~  
>  Thank you all so much for all your kind comments last chapter! Hopefully this one meets your expectations!

Kravitz stood shakily, still looking at his surroundings. He had no idea how he’d gotten there. The scythe, the portal, Wonderland—everything had happened so fast. He wasn’t sure it was even real.

Taako was still wielding his baseball bat, though he’d lowered it slightly on seeing it was Kravitz. “How did you get in? I didn’t even tell you what my apartment number was. Are—” His eyes narrowed suspiciously and he raised the bat again. “Are you _stalking_ me?”

“No!” Kravitz held out his hands defensively. “I—I don’t really know _how_ I got here—or I do, kind of, but it doesn’t make much sense—”

“Try me.”

Kravitz shook his head. “It’s going to sound crazy.”

“I said, _try me_.” Taako shrugged, but didn’t lower his bat. “You’ve seen the people I work with. It can’t be any worse.”

Sighing, Kravitz folded his arms and looked at the floor. “I…I’ve been having some… _problems_ lately.”

“What kind of problems?” Taako asked. “Sleepwalking? Sleep breaking and entering?”

“Taako, _please_.” Kravitz looked up at him again. “I’ve never talked about this with anyone but my aunt before. You have to promise you won’t tell a soul. Not even Lup.”

Taako wavered and finally lowered his bat. “That serious, huh?” he said quietly. When Kravitz nodded, he sighed and held up his hands. “Alright, alright, fine. I won’t tell anyone, not even Lup.”

Kravitz rubbed his hands together nervously. “Taako, I…have you heard of retrocognition?” Taako shook his head. “I’m not surprised. It’s not as flashy as telepathy, or psychokinesis, or even precognitive dreams. You certainly don’t see it in the media as much. It’s a type of psychic ability—the ability to perceive the past.”

“Is this going somewhere?” Taako sounded bored, but there was a worried furrow to his brow.

“I…” Kravitz took a deep breath. “I have psychic abilities. Retrocognition, sort of. Specifically, I can see people’s past lives just by looking at them. I don’t really know why or how or anything. It’s been happening for years now, and it wasn’t too bad until recently. I can’t turn it off, and I keep seeing things that can’t possibly be real.”

“Things like what?” Taako asked. His voice was quiet.

“Monsters. Ghosts. Robots. Elves and gnomes and weird fantasy men with some kind of bizarre flaming raging poisoning sword of doom or something; I still haven’t figured that one out.” He shook his head. “I went to my aunt for help, but all she could tell me was to look for the Raven Queen and the seven birds, which is completely not helpful at all—”

“Stop, wait, hold on.” Taako held up a hand. “You can see people in their past lives.”

Kravitz nodded. “Yes.”

“And some of them are fucking. Robots and shit?”

He nodded again. “Yes, that’s right.”

Taako folded his arms and cocked his hips to one side. “What does this have to do with you showing up in my kitchen at one in the _fucking_ morning?”

Kravitz blinked. “I—you’re not freaked out by the fact that I’m telling you I’m psychic?”

“Oh, don’t get me wrong, I’m freaked as all hell,” Taako said breezily. “But I’ve always been good at compartmentalization and repression. Hey, c’mere, this is a shitty place to have this conversation.” He turned to go, gesturing for Kravitz to follow him. Haltingly, Kravitz did, trailing behind Taako from the kitchen to what appeared to be Taako’s living room. Taako flopped down on one end, tucking himself into the corner between the armrest and the back cushion, gesturing for Kravitz to sit as well. Kravitz perched awkwardly on the other end of the couch. He wasn’t sure if the change of location made things better or worse.

“So. Past lives, huh?” Taako leaned an elbow against the back of the couch. “What was I?”

Kravitz shook his head. “It doesn’t work like that. I can see what you looked like, but that’s all.”

“Sick.” Taako stretched his arms out to his sides. “So what did I look like?”

Kravitz looked him over. “You’re…well, to start with, you were an elf.”

Taako sat up straighter. “ _Fuckin’ sweet_. Wait, like a pretty-boy fantasy adventure type elf or, like, making toys for a fat dude in red type elf?”

“You’re always a pretty boy, Taako.” Kravitz flushed and looked down at his hands in his lap. He hadn’t meant to say that.

“Well, I mean, _yeah_.” Taako preened, but there was a slight break to his voice. “But that’s not what I asked.”

Kravitz glanced up at him again. “More of a high fantasy elf than a North Pole one.” The faint outline of a wizard hat and apron flickered over Taako’s form. “I think you might have been a wizard? You have the hat for it, anyway.”

Taako felt around the top of his head. It was weird seeing his hands essentially clip through a hat that wasn’t really there. “Hell yeah, I’ve got magic powers.”

He shook his head. “You don’t believe what I’m saying is real, do you.”

“Nah, bubelah, it’s one in the a.m. and you could tell me the moon was made of cheese and I’d believe you. But I still don’t get why you showed up in my kitchen. Psychic powers are cool and all, but retrocog shit doesn’t explain that.”

“I was getting there.” Kravitz tapped his thumbs together, trying to figure out the best way to explain. “My aunt…she’s a fortune teller. Knows everything about psychics that there is to know. She’s the one who explained what my powers did when they first showed up. But when I went to her to ask what was going on with them recently…” He trailed off, shaking his head. “She didn’t have any answers for me. All she said was to look for the Raven Queen and the seven birds, whatever _that_ means. So I had to do some research.” He looked back at Taako. “You remember when we met up at Costco? I met a couple other elves there, too. They said they could help me find what I was looking for, so I went and found their, ah…establishment. Turns out they were some kind of information brokers, kind of, except you have to gamble with them if you want their information? I’m not sure; it was very surreal.”

“And this explains why you teleported into my kitchen?”

“I’m _getting_ there; be patient.” Kravitz wrung his hands in his lap. “I managed to get a little information from them before things went straight to hell and they—” He swallowed. “Taako, do you know what a litch is?”

Taako cocked his head and frowned thoughtfully. “Litches get stitches, right?”

Kravitz chuckled. “Sure. No, but, here’s the thing, I _don’t_ quite know what a litch is, but I believe it’s a sort of…demonic ghost entity.”

“According to Urban Dictionary,” Taako said, looking at his phone, “it’s an arcane spellcaster that’s magically increased their lifespan to the point of becoming undead.” He looked back at Kravitz. “So demon ghost kind of works.”

“I suppose.” Kravitz decided not to mention that his sister and her boyfriend were also, apparently, undead in their past lives. That was something to unpack later. “They…the information elves, they turned into litches. I don’t completely know how I know they were litches—something to do with my retrocognition I think—but that’s what they were.” He swallowed. “They wanted my sight.”

Taako frowned. “Like, your vision?”

“No, my sight abilities. My past sight.”

“Can they _do_ that?”

“According to them, yes.” Kravitz shook his head. “I didn’t know that was something that could be done, either. They told me they could take away my past sight in exchange for all the information they had on the Raven Queen. And I panicked.”

Kravitz held out his hand, closed his eyes, and took a breath. When he felt something solid materialize in it and Taako hoarsely whisper “what the _fuck_ ,” he knew he’d succeeded. Opening his eyes, he saw the scythe— _his_ scythe—in his hand. “I don’t know how, but I summoned this,” Kravitz continued, “and used it to open a portal to your kitchen. Quite by accident, I assure you.”

Taako stared, jaw slack. “And you couldn’t have, I don’t know, _lead_ with that?” he asked, voice cracking. “Fuck, Krav, I only half believed you up to that point, how the _fuck_ did you manage that shit? What the _fuck_?”

“I don’t know.” Kravitz absently twirled the scythe’s handle back and forth. “I just…reached out and there it was.”

“That’s weird as hell, my dude.” Taako was pressed into the arm of the couch, as far away from Kravitz as he could get. “Can you, like…put it away?”

“Probably?” Kravitz opened his hand and the scythe disappeared.

“Okay, cool. Fine. Great. And also cool. Okay.” Taako rubbed at his forehead. “So the hot dude who comes to see me at work is, like, an actual psychic who can summon _scythes_ and portal himself into my fucking _kitchen_ at _one in the morning_ at fucking will. That’s. Great. Yeah.”

Kravitz cleared his throat. “I understand if this is a, uh, a dealbreaker—”

“My dude.” Taako fixed him with a serious look. “I have never been so into someone in my entire fucking life.” Kravitz blushed. “I just have to figure some shit out, that’s all. This is…I’m not gonna lie, it’s a lot. But like, I can deal. If I can deal with Magic Brian, I can deal with anything.”

Kravitz blinked. “Who’s Magic Brian?”

Taako waved him off. “Long story, and we just finished one of those, so I’m going back to sleep. You, uh.” He gestured vaguely at Kravitz. “It’s kinda late. You gonna head home, or do you wanna crash on my couch? I’m good either way.”

Kravitz stared. He’d literally just told Taako that he had psychic powers, some kind of connection to a death goddess, and that he’d accidentally teleported into his kitchen. And yet Taako was still offering him a place to stay for the night. “That’s…very generous of you,” he managed.

“Eh.” Taako shrugged. “It’s not really, but sure.” He stood and stretched his arms over his head. “I’m going to bed. It’s up to you, Krav.”

“I…” Kravitz looked down at the couch. He wasn’t sure using his scythe to get home was a good idea, and he definitely hated the idea of walking the streets by himself at night. “If it’s alright with you…I’d like to stay.”

“Wouldn’t’ve suggested it if it wasn’t alright with me.” Taako wandered towards an open door, through which Kravitz could dimly see what looked like a very messy bedroom. “Let me see if I’ve got any pajama pants that’ll fit you.”

“You don’t have to do that,” Kravitz protested.

Taako threw a gap-toothed grin over his shoulder at him. “Look, either you sleep in your clothes—which sucks—or you sleep in your underwear, or you borrow some pants.”

Kravitz’s throat was suddenly very dry. “Pants, please.”

He winked. “Thought so.”

~~~

Kravitz didn’t get a lot of sleep. Taako’s couch was fine, the apartment was fine, everything was _fine_ , but he couldn’t get rid of the lingering anxiety of everything that had happened. All he wanted to do was call Aunt Paloma and beg for her to explain what was happening. He wasn’t sure she’d have any more answers for him than what he already knew, but she was all he had.

Taako’s glib reactions to everything somehow made him feel even worse. He was glad Taako hadn’t flipped his shit and kicked him out of his life forever, but his ever unflappable demeanor was just making Kravitz even more stressed.

All in all, it made for a restless night. Kravitz took some comfort in the fact that he wouldn’t have gotten any more sleep in his own bed. Daylight came soon enough, and with it a tapping at Taako’s living room window. Kravitz sat up and squinted towards it. He didn’t remember whether Taako’s building had a fire escape or not. If someone was out there, though, he should probably do something about it.

Dragging himself off the couch, Kravitz trudged to the window and opened the curtain. Standing on the fire escape outside was Taako’s boy, Angus. They stared at each other for a long moment before Angus burst into giggles, covering his mouth. “Hello, sir!” he called through the glass.

Kravitz opened the window, noticing that Taako’s window didn’t have a screen in it. “Angus, what are you doing here?”

Angus shrugged, clutching several notebooks and a magnifying glass to his chest. “I come here all the time.”

“Shouldn’t you be in school? It’s Monday, isn’t it?”

“There’s no school today, sir. It’s a PD day.”

“Ah.” Kravitz glanced behind himself at Taako’s closed bedroom door. “Does Taako know you’re coming?”

“No,” Angus said cheerfully. “But if I show up here he’ll let me stay.”

Kravitz wasn’t too sure about that, but he also didn’t want to abandon a child out on a fire escape, so he moved to let Angus clamber through the window. “Suit yourself, but if he gets angry I’m not defending you.”

“Yes, sir.” Angus immediately made for the kitchen table, sitting down and spreading out his books. Kravitz left him to it, gathering his clothes up from the day before to change into. By the time he found the bathroom, changed clothes, and washed his face, he heard voices from the other room.

Taako was standing over Angus, hands on his hips, interrogating him. “Does your grandpa know you’re here?” Angus shook his head. “Was he home when you left?” He shook his head again. “Has he been home in the last 24 hours?” Angus nodded this time. “Well, that’s something,” Taako muttered. “Have you eaten today?” Angus shook his head a third time. “Well, get off your ass, kid, you’re helping me make omelettes today.” Taako breezed past Angus towards the fridge, and Angus dutifully hopped off his chair and pulled a stool over to the counter.

Kravitz approached, clearing his throat. “I, uh, I should probably be going.”

Taako waved in his general direction. “Nah, have a seat. What do you like in your omelettes? I’ve got, uh, cheese, bacon, peppers, and onions.”

“I wouldn’t want to intrude—”

“My dude.” Taako looked at him for the first time that morning, a small grin on his face. Kravitz’s heart lifted. “Like I said last night, I wouldn’t offer if it was a problem. Besides, if you’re gonna be doing a walk of shame anyway, you might as well not do it on an empty stomach.”

Embarrassed, Kravitz cleared his throat. “Nothing happened last night for me to be ashamed of,” he said quietly.

Taako’s smile faded slightly, replaced with something soft. He quickly brushed it off with a laugh and went back to chopping vegetables. “I mean, yeah, but either way, you gotta eat. Sit your ass down.”

Kravitz insisted on helping, even though he’d never made an omelette in his life. He was relegated to the same basic tasks as Angus—chopping vegetables, grating cheese. Angus set the table while Taako plated the food (and Kravitz discovered he was _very_ particular about that) and the three of them sat at Taako’s tiny kitchen table to eat. It was all so…homey. It felt like they’d done this a million times before. Kravitz looked at the faint outline of Taako’s wizard hat and the magic wand sticking out of Angus’s back pocket and wondered if they had.

Before he left, Kravitz pulled Taako aside. “About what I said last night—”

Taako waved him off. “I’m still processing, bubelah. But look, I’m not—not gonna just suddenly not be into you anymore because you pulled some weird past-life shit and also a scythe on me. That’s not how Taako rolls.”

Kravitz ducked his head, smiling. “Thank you. Am I, ah. Am I still allowed at the Starblaster?”

“Hell yeah. In fact if you stop coming I’ll be more pissed about that than I am about your scythe bullshit.”

He smiled wider. “I…should be going.”

“Yeah, go on, get.” Taako shooed him out. “Gotta take care of some rando kid that some hot asshole let into my apartment without asking.”

Laughing, Kravitz let himself be pushed into the hall. “I’ll see you later.”

“I’m betting on it, Krav,” Taako said with a wink, closing the door behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [This](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Litch) is the UD page Taako references. Never let it be said that I don't cite my shit; I'm a librarian, I've got a reputation to keep up.


	12. Mirror, Mirror

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Johann smiles. Merle is surprisingly helpful. Kravitz sees something he wishes he hadn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a little short and lacking in Taako, but the next one is longer and has LOTS of Taako, so there's that to look forward to.  
> Also, I am a middle-aged dad at heart.

Johann approached Kravitz as he was gathering his things after rehearsal. “You look like death.”

“I _feel_ like death,” Kravitz replied. All told, he’d barely gotten any sleep, and despite what he and Taako had discussed on his way out the door his anxiety was through the roof. He’d never told anybody about his powers—nobody except Aunt Paloma—and last night he’d spilled his guts to the cute café worker. He’d been late to rehearsal because he misjudged the walk from Taako’s apartment to his, but at least he was wearing slightly presentable clothes.

Johann waved vaguely. “Same hat, I guess. Not to, like, abruptly change the subject or anything, but can I talk to you about something?”

Kravitz blinked. “Yeah, sure, that’s fine.” He’d been planning on going by the Bureau of Books to see if they had any books with information about the Raven Queen, but they’d still be open by the time he got there even if he stayed a while with Johann. “Is there a problem?”

“No.” Johann dug some crumpled papers out of his violin case. “I did, uh. A thing. And I wanted to run it by you, maybe.” He handed the papers to Kravitz. “Sorry if it’s not very good.”

Kravitz glanced over them. It was sheet music. “You…wrote this?”

Johann shrugged. “All I’ve got so far is the violin and harp parts. I was originally going to try it as a solo piece, but then it turned into a duet, and now I’m trying to decide if it’s good enough to turn into a full orchestra piece.”

A shiver ran down Kravitz’s spine as he looked the song over. The seven note refrain that he’d heard the first time he met Johann was the core of the piece. It was the main melody for the harp part, and later was picked up by the violin. Scrawled at the top was the title “March of the Forgotten,” even though it definitely wasn’t a march. That was just semantics, though. The song itself looked fine. “Could you play part of it for me?” he asked.

“Sure.” Johann picked up his violin. “I’m just going to do the first violin part. I kind of can’t play the rest of it by myself. You know. Two hands.” He tucked the violin under his chin and started playing.

Immediately something clutched at Kravitz’s heart. Watching and listening to Johann play this gorgeous music felt intimately familiar. It wasn’t quite the same way as walking into the BoB or the Starblaster had felt—that was like he was coming home for the first time in a long time. This was more like a feeling of seeing an old friend on the street. Not for the first time, he wondered where Johann had fit into things before.

His playing was amazing, too. Kravitz had heard Johann play before, of course, in rehearsal, but it was hard to focus on the second violin in an entire orchestra. He hadn’t realised Johann was so _good_.

When he’d finished playing, Johann lowered the violin and just stood there, looking very awkward. “So, uh,” he said. “That’s that.”

“Johann, that was _astounding_ ,” Kravitz said, standing up. “You—why didn’t you ever tell me you could play that well? Or that you wrote music? You deserve to be first violin, what—”

“I mean, I don’t like to brag,” Johann said, “but I’m—I’m pretty much the best violinist, uh—basically ever.”

Kravitz raised an eyebrow. “Not that I disagree, but how is that _not_ bragging?”

He shrugged. “It’s not bragging if you never get recognised for your hard work. This second violin position is the best job I’ve ever gotten.”

Frowning, Kravitz turned back to Johann’s sheet music. “You said you were trying to make this work for a full orchestra?” Johann nodded and Kravitz handed it to him. “When you’re all done, we should see about adding it to our repertoire.”

The smile Johann gave him broke his heart, and he wasn’t sure why.

~~~

The religion section of the Bureau of Books was clean, but clearly one of the less-travelled areas of the store. Kravitz poked around by himself for a few minutes before Merle showed up.

“Need a hand?” Merle asked.

There was no doubt in Kravitz’s mind that if he said yes, Merle would detach his prosthetic arm and throw it at him. “I’m…fine,” he said carefully. “I was just looking for anything you had that might reference the Raven Queen.”

Merle’s eyebrows shot up. “The Raven Queen? Now there’s one I don’t hear very often.” He folded his arms and scanned the shelves, then shook his head. “Nah, I don’t think there’ll be anything. Her Majesty doesn’t get brought up in a lot of texts.” He looked up at Kravitz. “Why’re you looking for books on the Raven Queen?”

Kravitz squirmed. “I’d rather keep that private, if it’s all the same to you.”

“Sure, whatever.” Merle shrugged. “I don’t know if you’ve tried this yet, but you could always go to the pan-religious temple. Of Pan. Well, sometimes. Mostly when I’m there.” He chuckled at his own joke and Kravitz had no idea what was happening in the conversation anymore.

“I…didn’t know such a thing existed,” he said slowly.

“Oh, yeah, they built it about ten years ago out near Goldcliff. It’s this big…well, it’s a temple where you can go to pray to pretty much any deity you want.” Merle shrugged. “It’s run by a couple of brothers. They’re followers of, uh, Istus, I think, but their whole thing is educating people on all kinds of religions and deities and shit. If they don’t have anything new for you there, they can probably at least point you in the right direction.”

“I see.” Kravitz nodded. “Thank you, Merle, that’s…surprisingly helpful.”

“No problem!” Merle turned and started walking away. “If you need any more help, ask Lucretia!”

Shaking his head, Kravitz turned to leave, but was suddenly scooped up by a very excited Magnus. “Kravitz! Guess what!”

“Please put me down,” Kravitz wheezed. Magnus was stronger than he looked, and he looked _very_ strong. He could feel the life draining from his body.

“Her name’s Julia and she works with _dogs_ and her dad’s a carpenter like me and we went out for lunch yesterday and I walked her back to work and she’s so cool and pretty and amazing and I _love_ her!” Magnus whirled Kravitz around excitedly, squeezing his breath out of him the entire time. He caught Lucretia’s eye at the counter and she shrugged apologetically. Kravitz got the feeling he wasn’t the first person to be on the receiving end of Magnus’s joy.

“I’m very glad for you _but I can’t breathe_.”

“Oh, sorry.” Magnus didn’t sound very sorry, but he deposited Kravitz back on the ground, beaming from ear to ear. “I just! God, Kravitz, I don’t think I’ve ever _been_ this happy! I didn’t know you _could_ be this happy! Is it possible to die from being too happy because I can think of worse ways to go.”

“No, I think you’re fine on that front,” Kravitz said after getting his breath back. He offered him a smile. “Congratulations.”

“Magnus, come move some heavy stuff for me,” Davenport shouted from the café.

Still grinning, Magnus waved at Kravitz and bounded off. Kravitz rubbed his sore ribs. He was glad Magnus and Julia were together, though. Somehow, their relationship was the one thing in his life that made any kind of sense.

~~~

Kravitz made himself a grilled cheese sandwich for dinner. Taako hadn’t texted him all day, and he wasn’t sure if it was proper for him to text first after what had happened that morning. Aside from that, though, Kravitz was exhausted. The lack of sleep, the extra walking, the stress and anxiety—it was all catching up to him. He started getting ready for bed at seven, which was a new record, even for him.

He was washing his face when it started. His vision started getting fuzzy and dark at the edges, and he panicked, thinking he was going to pass out. Then it passed, and he leaned on the edge of the vanity while the dizziness passed. Kravitz rubbed his eyes. It was the exhaustion; it had to be. He’d finish washing his face and go to bed and refuse to get out until he absolutely had to.

Kravitz put his glasses back on after putting his washcloth away and nearly screamed when he saw his reflection. In all the years since he’d first developed his ability, he’d never seen his own past self. No matter how long he looked at himself in the mirror, he looked the same as he did in everyday life. It had never been a big deal. He was a little curious, but he didn’t care about it all that much.

Now instead of his reflection showing his soft blue pajamas and thick-rimmed glasses, Kravitz saw himself wearing a sharp black suit with a blood red tie. In the reflection, his ears were pointed, although not to the same length as Taako or Lup’s. His eyes, wide and terrified, had an eerie red glow to them. In one hand he carried a scythe, and he had to check to make sure he hadn’t accidentally summoned one in real life as well. Draped over his shoulders was a black feathered cloak. It looked as though it was made of raven feathers.

He could feel himself shaking. Kravitz backed away from the sink, watching as his reflection mirrored his movements. There was a chime, like the one he’d heard in the Starblaster (was it only last week?) and his reflection changed. The flesh on his face and hands melted away, leaving nothing but bones for hands and a grinning skull for a face.

The next thing Kravitz knew, he was running for his bedroom. He slammed and locked the door behind him and dove under the covers, lying trembling under them until he fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :3c


	13. Mental Health Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz hides. Taako finds him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops I've hit the end of my buffer chapters it's probably going to be a bit before the next chapter sorryyyyyyy

_They were arguing._

_They were arguing, and Kravitz didn’t understand, how could these three idiots be so blasé about this? They had died over eighty times altogether. Did that mean nothing to them? Did it not faze them at all? He shouted at them through the necromancer’s highly illegal portal, changing to his skeletal Reaper form, asking them to come quietly._

_The elf, Taako, looked at him appraisingly, a weird little smile on his face. “You know,” he said, “if you wanted to lure me in there, you should’ve stayed handsome, my fella.”_

Kravitz’s alarm went off and he let it ring for a minute, staring at the ceiling. Had that been a retrocognitive dream? He struggled to remember it, but the details escaped him, leaving him with just Taako’s “you should’ve stayed handsome, my fella.”

He turned off his alarm and pulled a pillow over his face to muffle his frustrated screaming. The deeper he got into things, the less sense they made. He didn’t want to get up and go to rehearsal today. He wanted to hide under the covers and never come out. If he didn’t come out, he didn’t have to deal with anything. He could hide from everything and never face his problems. He’d never have to face that _thing_ in the mirror again.

His phone buzzed and he moved the pillow to glare dully at it. He had a dozen missed texts from Taako and an email confirming his automatic phone bill payment. Kravitz closed all of them and sent an email to the orchestra coordinators asking them to let the orchestra know he was sick and wouldn’t be coming to rehearsal. One of them got back to him immediately, telling him not to worry and to get some rest. Kravitz deposited his phone back on his bedside table and bundled himself back in his blankets. He was not moving today. He was not dealing with anything today. He was going to spend the whole day sleeping.

Not even an hour had passed before there was a tapping at Kravitz’s window. His first thought was that it was Angus again, but he the boy had no idea where Kravitz lived, nor any reason to visit him. He rolled over and tried to ignore it. After a few minutes it stopped, but it wasn’t long before it started up again, this time even more insistent. Growling to himself, Kravitz dragged himself out of bed and over to the window. He opened the curtains a little more violently than necessary, revealing the two ravens, staring unblinkingly up at him. “Go away,” he told them through the glass. “I’m not dealing with any of this shit today.”

One cawed at him, the other nudging something on his windowsill with its beak. There were a few bits and bobs there—shiny gold buttons, two coins from different currencies, and (for some reason) three very fancy forks. With a sigh, Kravitz opened the window. The ravens hopped out of the way as he scooped up their gifts. “I don’t want these,” he said, shaking the forks at them. “I don’t want any of this. Go away.”

They cawed at him again, but he shut the window and drew the curtains. He could still hear them out there, but eventually they either left or quieted down because he didn’t hear them anymore. Kravitz deposited the gifts on top of his dresser with the needle and thread they’d brought him before. He didn’t know why they kept bringing him things, but he figured it had something to do with the Raven Queen. And for that reason, he wanted nothing to do with them.

~~~

Someone was knocking on Kravitz’s window. Groggily, he rolled over to glare at it. Did no one use _doors_ anymore? Although he didn’t really have a leg to stand on there, seeing as he’d teleported into Taako’s kitchen instead of using the door—

Nope. He wasn’t going there. That part of his life—the weird part that didn’t make sense, with death gods and portal scythes and attractive but unsettling elves (well, maybe _one_ attractive but unsettling elf was okay)—that was done. Kravitz wasn’t dealing with it anymore. He wasn’t even going to _think_ about it anymore. Absolutely not. Under no circumstances would he allow himself to get caught up in all that again.

“Hey, uh, is this Kravitz’s apartment?”

It was Taako’s voice. Oh _fuck_.

“Krav? You in there?” Kravitz swore under his breath and hauled himself out of bed. He couldn’t just leave Taako standing on his fire escape. “You, uh, haven’t been answering my texts,” Taako continued. “And I wanted to, uh. Make sure you were okay? I guess? Uh, if this _isn’t_ Kravitz’s apartment I probably look _real_ dumb right now, so, uh, yeah.”

Kravitz opened the curtains. Taako looked back at him from the other side of the glass, sans apron, dressed casually in a denim skirt and off the shoulder top. “Hey,” he said. “What gives, homie? You’re not even dressed.”

Kravitz slid the window open. “How did you find my apartment?”

Taako jerked his thumb over his shoulder, and Kravitz could see the two ravens perched on the railing of the fire escape. “Came out of work and got greeted with some spooky birds. They were pretty, uh, _insistent_. I figured it was something to do with you, cuz, y’know, you’ve got that whole weird goth thing going—totally dig it, by the way, you should’ve told me you had fuckin’ pet crows.”

The ravens cawed indignantly. “They’re ravens,” Kravitz said tiredly, “and they’re not mine. They just think I’m their mom or something.”

“Krav.” Taako’s eyes were huge. “That’s _rad as hell_.”

Kravitz shut his eyes and let his head droop. “What do you want, Taako.” He was so tired. Even though he’d spent the whole day in bed, he was _so tired_.

“Dude.” Taako’s hands were on Kravitz’s face, lifting it so he’d look at him. “You didn’t come back. You said you were gonna, but you didn’t come by the Starblaster yesterday, even though Mags said you went to the Bureau. And then you didn’t answer any of my texts. And then you didn’t come at all today, either. I was worried.”

Slowly, Kravitz brought a hand up to rest it on top of one of Taako’s, leaning into it. “You don’t need to worry about me,” he said softly. “We hardly know each other.”

“Well.” Taako looked away for a moment. “I was mostly worried I’d beefed it pretty bad yesterday and that you didn’t want to talk to me. Now that I actually see you, though, I’m worried about you. Yesterday you looked like you’d been to hell and come out scared. Now you look like you went back for more and…I don’t know, _lost_ part of yourself.”

“It’s…a little of the opposite of that.” Kravitz sighed and pulled away. “You should come in.”

“Right, yeah, what would the neighbors think, right?” Taako joked, clambering in through the window after him.

Kravitz shook his head and sat down heavily on the bed, head in his hands. This was exactly what he’d wanted to avoid. All he wanted to do was crawl back into bed and stare at the wall some more. At least that didn’t involve _thinking_.

“Hey, fella, you good?” Taako was kneeling next to him on the bed, peering into his face with concern, a hand on Kravitz’s forehead. “You don’t have a fever, probably, so that’s good. You got a cold or what?”

“I…” Kravitz trailed off, not sure how to explain. Taako was also _very_ close into his personal space and that was making it difficult to form coherent thoughts. “I couldn’t get out of bed today.”

To Kravitz’s surprise, Taako sat back and nodded. “Mental health day, huh? I get that.”

Kravitz blinked. “You…do?”

“Sure.” Taako shrugged. “Sometimes shit happens, and uh. You’ve gotta take some time to deal with it. Process it and shit. Apparently that’s what ‘mature, responsible, healthy adults do,’ according to Dad’nport.” He blew a raspberry. “Sounds like bullshit to me, because I can spend a whole fuckin’ week staring into space and it still doesn’t make the world go away completely, but y’know.” When Kravitz didn’t say anything, he cleared his throat. “Look, I’m no good at this shit, this is Magnus’s territory, but, uh. You wanna talk about it?”

Kravitz didn’t say anything for a moment. “I’m not sure,” he finally said. “I…if I talk about it, that makes it real.”

“That’s cool.” Taako stood and stretched. “You’ve eaten today, right?”

He suddenly realised that he hadn’t even left his room to get a glass of water all day. “No.”

“ _Krav_.” Taako propped his fists on his hips and mock-glared at Kravitz. “You’re supposed to be the responsible one in this…” He faltered. “Whatever this is.” He went for the door. “I’m making you food, and you’re going to eat it.”

Kravitz didn’t protest, didn’t try to stop Taako. He’d find out soon enough.

Sure enough, Taako wasn’t gone for two minutes before he was storming back into Kravitz’s bedroom. “ _Why the fuck do you only have three slices of bread and two eggs in your kitchen?!_ ”

He shrugged, embarrassed. “I haven’t done groceries in a while.”

Taako rubbed at his temples. “Hachi machi, you’re worse than I am. Okay, I’m making you eggs in a nest, and then you’re putting on clothes and we’re getting groceries. I refuse to leave you in this sorry state.”

Kravitz followed him out of the bedroom into the rest of the apartment. Taako didn’t need any help navigating Kravitz’s kitchen, but he’d decided he didn’t want to be alone anymore. He still didn’t want to think about anything or talk about what had happened that made him stay in all day, but he didn’t want to shut out the entire world. That was progress, anyway.

“So if they’re not pets or whatever,” Taako said as he got to work, “what’s with the ravens?”

Oh good. “I don’t really know.” Kravitz deposited himself on the couch and watched Taako bustle around his kitchen like he’d been there a million times before. “They just showed up a few days ago. They keep bringing me things.”

“Yeah, I saw some shiny stuff on your dresser in there. That’s from them?”

Kravitz nodded. “They’re quite sweet.”

Taako cast a fond look over his shoulder at him. “Only you’d look at big scary death birds and think they were sweet.”

“They are,” Kravitz protested. “Obsidian and Pitch might look scary, but they—”

“Oh my god you _named_ them,” Taako chortled, face scrunched up as he laughed. “Krav, you’re hilarious.”

Kravitz didn’t say anything, instead staring at the floor in bewilderment. He hadn’t named them until now. He wasn’t sure where the names had even come from. Did he have ravens in his past life named Obsidian and Pitch? Did birds get reincarnated? _Were_ they connected to the Raven Queen?

“Hey, Krav?” Taako was kneeling in front of him, peering up into his face with concern. “You good? Did, uh, did I blow it again?”

He forced a smile. “No, you’re fine. It’s not—you, it’s not you.” Taako frowned at him and he put his hands over Taako’s. “I just—a lot of things happened yesterday, Taako, after I left your apartment, and—well, I couldn’t deal with them properly. So I—I hid from them, and now you’re here, and everything’s catching up to me, and I _still_ can’t deal with them.” He was rambling, and his breathing was weird, but he couldn’t stop talking. “Taako, something’s _wrong_ with me, I’m a—some kind of _freak_ , I don’t know, I don’t know what I’m doing or what’s happening to me and I—”

“Hey, relax. Breathe.” Taako’s hands cradled his face again. “It’s okay, you’re okay. And hey, if you’re a ‘freak’ or whatever, what’s that say about me, huh?”

Kravitz shook his head. “You’re not a freak, Taako.”

“Then neither are you, homes.” Taako’s thumbs brushed over Kravitz’s cheekbones. “Holy shit I could cut myself on these,” he muttered. “Um, look, the point is, you’re fine. You’re not any weirder than, like, that wack science nerd who keeps asking Lucretia for books about thanatology and weird extraplanar shit. Everybody’s weird.”

Kravitz looked Taako in the eyes tiredly. “I can summon a scythe from god knows where because I may or may not have a connection to a goddess of death.”

“Yeah, but you’re not, like, murdering anyone with it, so it’s whatever.” Taako paused. “You’re _not_ murdering anyone with it, yeah? That’d—I’ll be honest, Krav, that’d kinda kill the mood a lot.”

“No, I’m not.” Kravitz sighed. “Taako, I have confirmed psychic powers. I—I know things I shouldn’t, like the ravens’ names. I saw—” He swallowed, hands clenching into fists. “I saw myself in the mirror last night, Taako, and I’ve been terrified ever since. I don’t know what I was, but it was— _awful_ , it was awful, _I_ was awful, Taako—”

“Hey.” Taako shook him a little. “You stop that. You’re not awful. Okay, so you’re a little abnormal. Who the fuck cares? I don’t. Your aunt doesn’t. And anyone who does can eat shit. Got that?”

Kravitz could feel his breathing starting to return to normal. “Thank you.”

“Eh.” The timer went off and Taako stood, pressing a kiss to Kravitz’s forehead. “You’d do the same for me. Go get dressed, then you can eat and we’ll get groceries.”

“But I don’t _want_ to,” Kravitz said, and alright maybe he was whining a little.

Taako pointed at his bedroom. “Get going or I’ll kick your ass. I’m a fucking wizard, remember?”

Somebody laughed, and it took Kravitz a moment to realise it was him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanatology is the study of death, so no points for guessing who the "wack science nerd who keeps asking Lucretia for books about thanatology and weird extraplanar shit" is.


	14. The Start of Something New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things finally start going a little smoother for Kravitz and Taako.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :3c

Avi clapped Kravitz on the shoulder. “There he is! Everybody was pretty worried about you yesterday! You feeling any better?”

“Much, thank you.” Kravitz smiled at Avi and handed him his coffee. “I think it was just one of those twenty-four hour things.”

“Ah, that sucks.” Avi gratefully accepted his coffee and downed half of it. “Well, it’s good to see you back. I don’t remember the last time I saw you take a sick day, so it must’ve been a doozy!”

Kravitz laughed weakly. “Yes. That’s one way to put it.” He glanced at the clock on the foyer’s wall. “Well, back to work, I guess.”

Avi toasted him with his coffee. “Break a leg in there! Only a couple days until the season’s first concert!”

“So no pressure,” Kravitz sighed, walking off towards the auditorium.

Johann smiled at him when he entered, but didn’t get up from tuning his violin. Kravitz took his position at the conductor’s podium and cleared his throat. “Alright, everyone, we’re only a couple of days away from the start of our new season. This is our final rehearsal before then. We’re going to run through the entire concert at least twice today. Any questions?”

At the back, one of the percussionists raised his hand. “Are you okay? They told us you were sick yesterday.”

Kravitz smiled. It was nice to be cared about. “Thank you, David, I’m fine. And not contagious, even.” A few chuckles from the musicians, and Kravitz raised his baton. “Alright, let’s start from the beginning. Conventional wisdom and Julie Andrews both tell us that’s a very good place to start.”

~~~

Kravitz walked into the Starblaster to loud shouting. Bewildered, he looked around for the source of it, finding Magnus running toward the Bureau’s cashier counter, a plastic container over his head. It took a moment for Kravitz to figure out what he was shouting, and when he did it still didn’t make much sense. Magnus tore the top off the jellyfish tank built into the counter and started dumping the contents of his container in, still chanting “SHRIMP! HEAVEN! NOW!”

“Please, Magnus,” Lucretia said, head in her hands and barely audible above his yelling, “we can’t keep doing this.”

Kravitz stood awkwardly in the Starblaster’s doorway, wondering if he should maybe just…leave. This was a little much for him still.

Then Lup waved at him from behind the counter. “Hey, Taako’s boyfriend!” She laughed as he sputtered. “Nah, I know what your name is. Taako hasn’t shut the fuck up about you for days.” She stuck her hand out for a handshake as he walked over to the counter. “Don’t think we’ve been properly introduced. I’m Lup. You know, the hot twin?”

Kravitz gave a thin smile and shook her hand. “Kravitz, though I suppose you already knew that.”

“Fuck yeah I did. You got a date or something? Taako’s gone home already.”

“Oh.” Kravitz hadn’t known that. He always just assumed he could find Taako at the café. “That’s…fine. I’ll just get a coffee, please.”

She rolled her eyes. “Dude, just text him. He’s probably not doing anything anyway. Most of the time he just like...stress bakes. Get him off the couch before he wears a hole in it.”

“I will,” Kravitz promised. “But first, coffee.”

Lup looked at him approvingly. “Thataboy. Medium coffee, coming up. Anything else?”

He hesitated. “No, thank you.”

“Cool.” She poured him a coffee and exchanged it for his money. When he went to take his change, she took his hand and pulled him in close. “By the way,” she said. Her tone was casual, but her voice was quiet. “My brother’s been through a lot. Not just lately, I mean like…our whole lives. He deserves to be happy.”

Kravitz had the feeling that he was being threatened again. Apparently everybody wanted to threaten him over Taako’s happiness. “I know. Lucretia already told me sort of the same thing.”

“Sick, but she probably didn’t tell you that I will burn down your apartment building if you fuck with my brother.”

He tried not to smile and failed. “No, she did not.”

“As long as we’re clear.” She gave him his change and straightened with a smile. “Tell him I said hey.”

~~~

_Can I come over?_

Kravitz sipped his coffee on a bench outside the Starblaster and checked his emails while he waited for Taako to text him back. He didn’t have to wait long.

_fuck yeah_

_dont portal in im not wearing pants_

_or do idc ;)_

Kravitz nearly choked on his coffee. They were still a bit early for that, weren’t they? He still wasn’t used to how forward Taako was.

__

_I'll walk like a regular person, thanks._

_:P baby_

It amazed Kravitz how glibly Taako was taking everything. Nothing fazed him. He wished he could be the same way.

Taako’s apartment was only a ten-minute walk from the Starblaster. He didn’t remember what apartment Taako lived in, so he had to text him to tell him he was there. Taako strolled out the front door a few minutes later, diamond-print leggings and black scarf and all. “Hey babe,” he said. “You wanna go somewhere, or come up? I don’t have the kid today, so I’m down to clown.”

“I’m glad to hear there weren’t any children in your apartment while you were sitting around pantsless.”

He was shoved for his trouble. “Fuck you. Come on, let’s go somewhere. You eaten?” Kravitz shook his head. “I know a good food truck that parks near here.”

~~~

‘Near here’ turned out to be another twenty-minute walk down to the boardwalk. Kravitz wished he’d worn better walking shoes, but he hadn’t known he was going to do so much walking. Other than that, it was a nice walk. Summer was definitely coming to an end, and there was a cool breeze coming off the Stillwater Sea. Taako talked about some of the weird customers they’d had that day, and also the snack mix he’d made Angus the day before. Kravitz wondered if he should try to hold Taako's hand. He didn’t.

The food truck Taako had spoken so highly of was on the boardwalk. Decals on the side and a sign out front proclaimed it was called South Beach Tacos. Kravitz raised an eyebrow at Taako. “Your namesake?”

Taako elbowed him. “This place has the best picadillo tacos in Neverwinter. Don’t knock it ‘til you've tried it, fella.”

“I wasn’t knocking it,” he protested. “Just…thought it was funny that Taako was taking me to a taco truck.” He paused. “Also, what’s a picadillo taco?”

“Unbelievable.” Taako led him to the truck’s window. “Hey, Joaquin, it’s ya boy Taako.”

A young man, no more than eighteen, stuck his head out the window. “Oh, hey!” he said. “You, uh, you haven’t been by in a while. I was kinda getting worried?” He looked over at Kravitz. “Who's this?”

Taako attached himself to Kravitz’s arm and Kravitz was very proud of himself for not dying on the spot. “This is Kravitz, and he’s never had a picadillo taco, which, as you know, is a crime punishable by being forced to eat a picadillo taco immediately.”

Joaquin grinned, showing his braces. “Two picadillo tacos! Give me a minute.” He disappeared back inside the truck.

Kravitz stood awkwardly for a moment. “So,” he said, “come here often?”

“Yeah.” Taako still had his arm linked with Kravitz’s. “You avoid cooking for long enough and you get to know _all_ the local food places. Restaurants, fast food, food trucks, convenience stores, you name it and I probably know at least one employee by name.”

That threw Kravitz a little bit. “You avoided cooking? I thought you loved cooking.”

Taako clammed up for a moment, then sighed. “You’ve been way honest with me, so I guess I should do the same. I, uh, had an incident? In the kitchen.” He started playing with a stray strand of hair, twirling it around his finger. “God, it was probably six years ago now? And, um, a bunch of people got really sick.”

“If you don’t want to talk about it—”

“Nah, I’m good.” Taako shrugged, but he didn’t look like he was good with it. Just…resigned. Resigned to telling this story. “Turned out it wasn’t actually even my fault, in the end, but, um, anyway, that’s why I work at the Starblaster instead of doing my own shit. If I’m following someone else’s recipe instead of my own I don’t feel as much like I’m gonna fuck everything up again.” He gave a hollow chuckle. “Took me a while to get to that point, though. So in the meantime I just…ate food other people cooked. Because it was safer.”

Kravitz didn't say anything. What was there to say? When Lup and Lucretia had talked about how not-great Taako’s life had been up to that point, this wasn’t really what he'd expected. He worked his arm around Taako;s shoulders and squeezed him reassuringly. Taako leaned into his side and he swallowed.

Before either of them could say anything, Joaquin poked his head out again, two tacos in his hands. “Order up!”

Kravitz took his taco and studied it while Taako paid. It looked like a regular taco, but there was…potato? It looked like potato, but it was hard to tell with all the other ingredients in the way. There was also avocado, which Kravitz had never been the biggest fan of, but he’d deal with it for the sake of trying something new.

Taako joined him and tapped their tacos together. “Clink,” he said. “Bon appetite.”

Kravitz raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t it bon appetit?”

“Who’s the chef here? I know what I’m talking about.”

He laughed and took a careful bite of his taco. His eyes widened. “This is _so good_ ,” he said with his mouth full.

“Right?” Taako said, also with his mouth full. “I told you. Joaquin’s the best.”

Kravitz did his best not to get the filling all over his hands, but it didn’t quite work out the way he wanted. Taako laughed at him and he grimaced. “Shut up,” he said. “I’ve never been very good at eating tacos.”

“Well.” Taako leaned towards him and winked. “I’d be willing to let you practise.”

Kravitz choked. “I—I—you—”

“Relax, I’m just teasing.” Taako paused. "Mostly.”

“That…that doesn’t help much,” Kravitz said once he got his breath back. Good grief, there was forward, and then there was _Taako_. He was going to die.

But, god, what a way to go.

~~~

“I told you, it’s fine,” Taako said, unlocking the door to his apartment. “I wouldn’t have invited you up if I thought you’d be intruding.”

“It’s, just.” Kravitz swallowed as he followed Taako inside. “I wouldn’t want you to go to any trouble. You paid for dinner, and—”

“Krav.” Taako turned to face him, hands on his hips. “It’s _fine_. Learn to relax.” He wandered into the living room and flopped down on the couch, Kravitz following somewhat bewilderedly. He’d only been in Taako’s apartment once before, after all. “Wanna see what’s on Netflix?” Taako asked, reaching for the remote.

Kravitz sat on the couch, hands in his lap. “I guess?”

Taako set the remote down, studying him. “Or not. It’s up to you.” He reached out to touch Kravitz's shoulder. “You look tense.”

“How are you like this?” Kravitz blurted. Taako’s eyes widened and he realised how that sounded. “No, that’s not—I didn’t mean—how are you not losing your mind right now? I _teleported into your kitchen_ just two days ago! I have ravens that follow me around! I’m either connected to an ancient death goddess or bat-shit insane! Maybe both? How…I just…I don’t understand how you can act like everything’s normal. And don’t get me wrong,” he added, “I love that you’re the most normal thing in my life right now. You’re keeping me grounded. I just…don't get it.”

Taako tilted his head and studied him. “Maybe it’s because it’s not really happening _to_ me, you know? It’s easy to be chill when the weird stuff is happening to someone else. Like, yeah you’ve got that whole spooky vibe going, but I kinda dig that.” Kravitz gave a somewhat strangled laugh and pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes. “Hey, stop that.” Taako pried his hands away. “You’re cool, okay?”

Kravitz took a deep breath and looked up at Taako. He was hovering just slightly above Kravitz, holding his hands. Kravitz worked one of his hands free and ran it through Taako’s hair, amazed that he was allowed. “Thank you,” he said quietly.

“Yeah,” Taako said. He sounded like he was having an out of body experience and his eyes kept flicking to Kravitz's lips. Kravitz opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly found he couldn’t, because Taako was kissing him. His eyes closed and he kissed him back, burying his hand in Taako’s hair. He let himself get lost in the kiss, and he hadn’t been expecting the evening to go this way but god if he wasn’t glad it did. Kissing Taako was good and perfect and he never wanted to stop.

Taako pulled away after what seemed like both too long and not nearly long enough, staring down at Kravitz with huge eyes. “Oh, fuck,” he said. “Did…did I fuck up? Should I not have—”

“Kiss me again,” Kravitz interrupted.

Taako grinned. “Absolutely.”

By the time they came up for air again, Kravitz was fully pressed against the couch’s armrest, one hand in Taako’s hair and the other on his back, at the hem of his shirt. Taako had lost his scarf, and his hands were undoing Kravitz’s tie. They were breathing hard, and Kravitz’s head swam. “Taako,” he said breathlessly, watching as Taako slid his tie from around his neck and dropped it unceremoniously on the floor, “what are we doing?”

“Whatever you want,” Taako answered, leaning down to kiss Kravitz’s jaw. “We don’t have to go any further than this if you don’t want to.” He sat up to grin at Kravitz again. There was something soft and genuine and a little nervous behind the bravado. “But I wasn’t kidding when I said I really liked you. If we wanna do this thing, it’s not gonna just be a one-time deal. I don't do those.” His eyes hardened. “Not anymore.”

Kravitz ran Taako's hair through his fingers. “I don’t either,” he said. “And…if you want to…we can see where the night goes. I can’t think of anywhere I’d rather be than here, now, with you.”

Something softened in Taako's face. His jaw slackened a little. “Jesus, you really are the whole package,” he murmured. Kravitz flushed, and Taako leaned down to kiss his cheeks. “You’re something else, Kravitz,” he said, “and I like it. Do you want to spend the night again? It’ll be more fun than it was last time.”

A million responses ran through Kravitz's mind, but the only word that came out of his mouth was “yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >:3c
> 
> (I'm keeping this fic rated T, but I'm hardcore considering writing a NSFW side fic/oneshot despite the fact that I haven't written NSFW in like a year ghdlihdflkjgf)


	15. Chug 'n Squeeze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz experiments. Taako talks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you missed it, I _did_ wind up posting a NSFW interlude taking place between the last chapter and this one. You can find it in the new Echoes series in the fic data at the top of the page (it's the second in the series) or [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15294333). *WINK*

A high-energy pop song woke Kravitz, and he opened his eyes groggily. That wasn’t his alarm. He hadn’t even set an alarm. It was his day off.

Someone moved next to him, and he heard Taako grumble, and everything came flooding back. His dinner date with Taako, coming up to Taako’s apartment, the kiss, everything that had happened after—that had all been real. That had all happened. He rolled over to face Taako, staring as he fumbled with his phone and hauled himself out of bed. He’d really spent the night with Taako, told him about his feelings—all of it. He sat up and pinched himself. It hurt, and his heart swelled. This wasn’t some retrocognitive dream. It was _real_.

“Shit, did I wake you?” Taako asked. His voice was scratchy with sleep. He pushed weakly at Kravitz’s head. “Go back to sleep, bubelah. I gotta get ready for work.”

Shaking his head, Kravitz grabbed Taako's hand. “You—” He swallowed and pressed his lips to Taako’s palm. “Okay. Have a good day at work.”

“Fuck.” Taako freed his hand and ran in through Kravitz’s hair. “You big sap.” His voice was fond as he pushed Kravitz back to the bed with slightly more force this time. “Sleep as long as you need. We’ve still got our Chug ’n Squeeze date tonight, right?”

With all the excitement and insanity over the last few days, Kravitz had almost forgotten that they had a real, scheduled date planned for tonight. “Of course,” he mumbled as Taako withdrew his hand and set about getting dressed. “Wouldn’t miss that for the world.”

He felt Taako’s lips brush his cheek before he fell asleep again.

~~~

When Kravitz woke again, he was alone in Taako’s bedroom. He sat up and dug around the room to find his pants, pulling out his phone when he’d found them. It was only quarter to nine. He stretched out his back and set about gathering his clothes. God, it had been a while since he’d spontaneously stayed the night at another man’s place. He didn’t count the last time he’d stayed at Taako’s apartment, because that had been a weird outlier sort of situation. He hadn’t been planning to spend the night that time. Not that he’d meant to stay over this time, either. Things had just...happened.

Kravitz pulled on yesterday’s clothes before heading back to the living room. His vest and tie were draped over the back of the couch, a piece of paper resting on top of them. The paper was a hastily scrawled Post-It note, presumably from Taako.

_hey feel free to grab yourself food from the fridge_  
you can hang out here for today if you want, but that’s totally up to you  
see you tonight, hot stuff ;) 

Kravitz shook his head and set the note aside, even as he felt his face warm. Taako was...

He wondered if he’d be able to call Taako his _boyfriend_ now.

He swallowed and looked around the apartment. It was a little messy, but not as much of a disaster as the bedroom itself. That place looked like several clothing websites had exploded in there. The living room and kitchen areas had a few dishes strewn about, some books where they shouldn’t be, the TV remote wedged upright between two of the couch cushions—just regular, general clutter. Kravitz gathered up the dishes and brought them to the kitchen. He ran some warm water and let them sit in the sink to soak before poking about Taako’s cupboards. Kravitz was very much a milk and cereal for breakfast sort of man if he was making it himself, but it didn’t look like Taako had cereal. Of any kind. Kravitz frowned. He would’ve settled for stale Corn Flakes, but oh well. Taako didn’t seem to have any kind of coffeemaker either, although that was a little more understandable. Working at a coffee shop probably put him off the stuff something fierce.

Kravitz rolled up his sleeves and started washing the dishes. There weren’t many, and none of them were really all that messy, so it didn’t take long, but by the time he was done his stomach was growling at him. He sighed. He really should get going. Taako’s note had said he could spend the day at his apartment, but he figured he should at least go home to change and get something to eat.

He gathered up the last of his things and started for the door when a thought stopped him. He hadn’t tried using his scythe since the night he went to Wonderland. Was...was that a viable way to get home? Kravitz swallowed his nerves and squeezed his eyes shut. This was a part of him, now. It was something he had to live with. He might as well get used to it.

Holding out one hand, Kravitz took a deep breath and called forth his scythe. He felt it appear in his hand, and he let out the breath as he opened his eyes. Sure enough, there it was. It was taller than he was, and the blade looked like it could do some real damage if he wanted it to. He took a few steps back, making sure he wasn't going to accidentally cut through any of Taako’s furniture if he messed this up. He’d only done this once before, after all, and not on purpose.

Nerves danced in his stomach. He clutched the scythe’s handle tight and swung it in a vertical arc.

Nothing happened.

Not for the first time, Kravitz wished his powers had come with an instruction manual. Or, if nothing else, at least one for the scythe. He took a breath and let it out slowly. He’d try one more time, and if it didn’t work, he’d just walk home like a normal person. Kravitz adjusted his grip and swung the scythe again.

This time there was a noise like all the paper in the world being ripped in half, and a tear in space sat before him. Kravitz stared. He hadn’t gotten a good look at the last one since he’d panicked and dove through it immediately, needing to be anywhere but Wonderland. Now he could see a long, oval-shaped hole in the air. Instead of seeing the rest of Taako’s apartment on the other side, though, he could see a fuzzy, distorted version of his own bedroom. It looked like a hazy mirage of his bedroom was superimposed over part of Taako’s living room.

Gripping his scythe like his life depended on it, Kravitz shut his eyes and stepped through.

There was a moment of dizziness and disorientation, but it passed quickly, and when Kravitz opened his eyes he was standing at the foot of his bed. He turned in time to see the portal he’d made closing behind him, and he opened his hand to let his scythe dematerialize as his knees went out from under him and he sat on the floor with a _thud_. He’d done that. He’d just—he’d thought it, and it had happened. A sharp laugh escaped him, and then another, and then he was laughing hysterically on his bedroom floor, arms wrapped around himself, tears streaming down his face. Holy _shit_. What _was_ he?

~~~

Kravitz didn’t stop shaking for three hours. He made himself cereal and had a shower, and doing such mundane, everyday things helped finally ground him a little after the portal incident. The scalding water was actually fairly soothing, and it steamed up the mirror so he wouldn’t have to look at himself in it.

Around noon, he got a text from Taako.

_gonna be a lil late_  
davs sick so i gotta make sure everythings extra prepped for tomorrow  
but lookin forward to our date handsome ;) 

Kravitz smiled at his phone. He’d wondered if things would suddenly be awkward between them after the night they’d shared, but it didn’t seem so. If anything, now that he was totally clear on Taako’s attraction to him, he wasn’t as caught off guard by Taako’s flirting. He leaned on his dresser as he tried to figure out how to reply. Maybe he should try giving as good as he got.

_  
_

Don’t worry about being late, love. I’ll be ready and waiting for you when you get home. ;)

__  


He immediately regretted his entire life after pressing send. That had been too much, for sure. Even just the little winky face was probably too much, even if Taako sent him those all the time. Also, how was he supposed to get back into Taako’s apartment? He didn’t have a key or anything.

Oh, right. The same way he’d gotten out.

Kravitz put his phone on top of his dresser before he did anything else he’d regret and tried not to think about the fact that he was already planning on actively using his abilities for the second time that day. He really, _really_ needed to talk to Aunt Paloma. Surely she’d have _something_ for him. But he did want to check into the Pan-Religious Temple that Merle had mentioned. It was the only avenue he knew about that he hadn’t explored yet. But after the disaster of Wonderland...

Well, he could cross that bridge when he got to it. Right now he had a date to dress for. Kravitz had never been to a wine and pottery class before. He had no idea what sort of dress code to expect. Surely nothing too elaborate—clay was messy, after all. But he wanted to look nice for his date, so he couldn't just wear his grubby sweatpants and the shirt he’d spilled paint on when he was repainting his kitchen last summer. Eventually, he found an old dress shirt that he hardly wore and a gunmetal grey vest he could take off to avoid getting clay on it. He wasn’t so lucky with the trousers. The only clean ones he could find that he didn’t mind getting a little messy were jeans, and wasn’t that too casual? Then again, it _was_ just a pottery class. Black jeans it was.

After making sure he had his wallet, keys, and cell phone, he checked the time and was embarrassed to notice that he’d spent an entire hour and a half getting ready. Taako would be home soon, and he intended to make good on his promise to be ready and waiting for him when he got there. His hands shook as he summoned his scythe. The only way he was going to get used to this was if he did it over and over, and really the only place he could do it to and from was Taako’s since he already knew about it. Kravitz swung the scythe and another oblong portal appeared with the same tearing sound, this time featuring a fuzzy mirage of Taako’s kitchen. Taking a deep breath, he stepped through.

The disorientation wasn’t quite as bad this time. It only took a second before he shook it off and the portal closed behind him. Kravitz opened his hands and the scythe disappeared, and he looked around the apartment. It looked exactly the way it had when he’d left that morning. A shudder ran down his back and he clenched both fists and squeezed his eyes shut, willing himself not to be overcome with another bout of hysterics. This…whatever this was, wherever these powers had come from, they were part of him now. He _had_ to get used to them. He _would_ get used to them. The fact that using them left him shaking and anxious was just something he’d have to deal with until he got over it. What was it called? Immersion therapy?

A noise came from the front entryway and he hurried into the living room in time to see Taako walk in the front door. He gave Taako the best smile he could muster, still shaken from his recent portal experience. “Welcome back,” he said.

Taako dropped his canvas bag on the floor and absolutely flung himself at Kravitz as the door closed behind him, throwing his arms around his neck and planting a passionate kiss on his mouth. It wasn’t the reaction Kravitz had expected at all, and he stumbled under Taako’s weight before catching himself. He carefully put his hands on Taako’s shoulders and kissed him back as best he could. He may not have been expecting it, but he wasn’t exactly about to complain.

“Fuck,” Taako breathed when he pulled away. “I’ve wanted to do that since…” He trailed off, pulling his phone out of a pocket and glancing at it. “Twelve thirteen. You absolute _bastard_.”

Kravitz wracked his brain, trying to figure out what he’d done at quarter after twelve that could’ve made Taako react like this. His eyes widened as he realised that was probably the time he’d texted Taako. “Oh. I…thought maybe you’d be annoyed.”

“Annoyed? Krav, are you serious?” Taako kissed him again, gentler this time, slower, sweeter. He pulled back and grinned his gap-toothed smile that made Kravitz glow inside. “If we didn’t already have reservations for the evening I’d _absolutely_ be cancelling all our plans and keeping you all to myself all night.” He traced a finger down Kravitz’s jaw as Kravitz stammered some nonsense—even he wasn’t sure what he was trying to say. “Guess that’ll have to come later, huh? We got a few hours before our reservation at the Chug ’n Squeeze, so let me throw on some cute shit and we’ll grab dinner beforehand. Sound good?”

Kravitz took a breath and managed a smile, and it felt more real and genuine than anything else he’d done all day. Something about Taako made him relax, despite…well, being Taako. “Sounds great.”

~~~

“So. Twins, huh?”

Taako glanced up from the bowl he was making. “What?”

“You and Lup. You’re, um, twins.” Kravitz cleared his throat and reached for his wine glass. As topics for small talk went, that was a new low, even for him.

“You just figuring this out now?” Taako asked with a grin.

Kravitz shook his head. “No, sorry, I…was just wondering what it was like. Growing up with, you know. Siblings.”

Taako tilted his head and stopped his pottery wheel. “Only child?”

Kravitz nodded. “Unless there’s something _else_ Aunt Paloma isn’t telling me, yes.”

Taako raised his eyebrows, but didn't push the subject. “Well, uh,” he said, “if you’re looking for an average baseline for growing up with siblings, you’d be better off asking somebody else.” He started his wheel up again, staring intently at his bowl. “Me an’ Lup, most of the time all we had was each other. So we’re, uh, we’re way closer than a lot of siblings. Even for twins.”

Kravitz reached for Taako, hesitating before he actually made contact. “We don’t have to talk about this,” he said quietly. “I didn’t mean to bring up anything painful.”

The look Taako gave him was condescending at best. “I’m way over it, my guy. It’s been years.” He didn’t _sound_ ‘way over it,’ but Kravitz let it drop. He did want to know more about Taako, and if he was willing to talk about himself, Kravitz wasn’t going to waste the opportunity. “Yeah, we uh, kinda moved around a lot? Lotta places wouldn’t take two kids, but you kick up a big enough stink about it and most people give up and either take both of you or ditch you as a lost cause for some quieter kid.” His eyes were hard, even if his tone stayed light. “But like _fuck_ were we gonna let ourselves get separated, you know? Nobody else knew Lup like I did, and nobody else would’ve protected me like she did. We were an unbeatable duo, some kinda Batman and Robin shit.” He paused. “I…I’m not sure which one of us would’ve been Batman. Probably me.”

Kravitz poured him another glass of wine. “How long have you been in Neverwinter? You said you’d only been here a short time, right?” There. That had to be a safer topic.

“Yeah, I think it’s been, like, a year?” Taako paused, looking at the ceiling as he thought. “No, wait, shit, it’ll be two years next month. Merle said his boyfriend was looking for people to help out at his café so we said we’d join up for a bit, just, like, temporary help, you know? Gotta pay bills and shit.” He grinned crookedly at Kravitz. “We, uh, ended up staying on a little longer than that.”

“Merle’s…boyfriend?” Kravitz tried to think of who that could be. He was too old for Magnus…

“Davenport, my dude.” Taako laughed at Kravitz’s shocked face. “Did you not know?”

Kravitz shook his head. “I’ve never seen them together. I...” He cleared his throat. “Anyway, how did you two know Merle?”

Taako gave him a weird look. “That guy’s, like, basically our dad.” He scratched his nose, smearing clay over his face. “Dude was the first guy who said he’d take both of us after our aunt died, not to mention we’d grown up into shitty, unruly teenagers by then. Nobody wants the older kids. We’d figured we were just gonna either age out of the system or run away for, like, the eighth time when Merle came along.” He gestured to Kravitz’s slowly collapsing vase. “You’re not gonna keep many flowers in that, homie.”

Embarrassed, Kravitz started up his wheel and got back to shaping his vase. It wasn’t going very well, and he got the feeling that he wouldn’t be keeping many flowers in it regardless. “You don’t have to tell me all this,” he said. “We—this is still fairly early into our—into _us_ —if it makes you uncomfortable to tell basically a stranger all about your life story, I won’t force you.”

“See, here’s the thing about that, though.” Taako stopped his wheel and reached for a rag to wipe his hands. “It feels like you know all this stuff already. Or, like, you _should_ know it. Isn’t that weird?” He gestured between them. “You think it’s anything to do with that past life stuff you like to talk about?”

Kravitz shook his head. “I have no idea.” He really needed to talk to Aunt Paloma again. She was supposed to be coming to the concert tomorrow night and staying at his apartment overnight; hopefully he’d have the opportunity then. “I wouldn’t consider it outside of the realm of possibility, though? It…I’ll be honest, I’m very much out of my depth when it comes down to this sort of thing. It’s really more of my aunt’s thing.”

“Yeah, your aunt.” Taako sat back in his chair, sipping at his wine. Apparently, he was done sculpting for the night. “You mentioned her a couple times. What’s she about?”

“Aunt Paloma?” Kravitz asked. His vase caved in at the top and he swore, slowing the wheel to get it built up again. “She’s my aunt. She does fortunetelling, baked goods, the occasional seance, you know. That sort of thing.” He stopped turning the vase after smoothing it out a little. It would have to do. “She raised me after…” He trailed off. “I’m…not sure. She never told me what happened, just that my mother couldn’t take care of me. I don’t…Auntie doesn’t like talking about it.”

Taako’s hand covered his. “Hey, same rules apply,” he said breezily. “If you don’t wanna talk about it, you don't have to.”

Kravitz smiled at him. “That’s very kind of you, but my parentage honestly doesn’t bother me.” Or, well, it hadn’t, not until Aunt Paloma let slip that his powers came from his mother. But he wasn’t about to unload all that onto Taako, not when they were having a nice evening like this. “I love my aunt. She’s always looked out for me. We lived out in Refuge, then I went to university in Rockport. I only moved here a few years ago when I got the conductor job with the Neverwinter Symphony Orchestra.”

Taako looked like he was about to say something else when one of the Chug ’n Squeeze servers appeared next to their table. “All done, gentlemen?” he asked, eyeing Taako’s bowl with disdain. “You…do realise, sir, that tonight was vase night?” He pointed to the chalkboard on one wall that showed the weekly schedule, which quite plainly said that Thursdays were Cabernet and Vase Night. “Bowls are on Mondays, paired with Pinot Noir.”

Taako propped his chin in both hands and smiled up at the server, and there was something off-putting about it. “I felt like making a bowl tonight, homes. Didn’t realise I was supposed to just, you know, chain up my _muse_ for your precious little _schedule_.”

The server wavered, then seemed to decide it wasn’t worth it and reached to remove the pottery pieces from their respective wheels. “If you say so, sir. I’ll just get these ready to go, then. Feel free to check out at the front desk anytime.” He disappeared into the back room of the shop without another word.

Kravitz looked around, wiping his hands on a cloth. “Do we just…leave?”

“Yeah, pottery takes, like, a week at least.” Taako stretched his arms over his head. “They’ll give us a call when it’s time to pick the glaze, then again when it’s ready to be picked up.”

“You have…” Kravitz trailed off, pointing at his own face to indicate the now half-dry clay covering Taako’s face.

Taako scowled. “Fuck, I forgot. Ugh, and I spent so long on this makeup, too.”

Kravitz handed him the cloth to wipe his face. “You look nice, though. Accidental makeover aside.” He must have told Taako so a thousand times tonight already, but he really did look stunning. It was a casual enough outfit to be comfortable, but it looked classy enough for their first real date. Skinny jeans tucked into knee-high black boots were paired with a cute lacy crop top. His hair was styled up in a carefully-messy bun, and he hadn’t been lying about how long it had taken him to do his makeup—Kravitz had been there for the whole thing—but it was worth it. It amazed him how Taako could pull off so many different looks and styles. Kravitz counted himself lucky if he wore a basic polo shirt and blue jeans instead of a dress shirt and slacks. He’d always been a one style sort of person.

Taako preened at the compliment, tossing the cloth aside. “Thanks, I know. You’re pretty snazzy yourself, fella.” Kravitz laughed. Taako didn’t seem to be lacking in self-confidence, that was for certain. “Hey, look, uh, you sure something’s not bothering you?” Taako asked. “Like, quid pro quo and all that, but you seriously don’t have to talk about stuff if it bothers you.”

He looked serious enough that Kravitz leaned over to kiss his forehead. “I promise it doesn’t bother me.”

“Then what’s up?”

Kravitz hesitated. He didn’t really want to talk about his portal experiences from earlier. That was just something he’d have to work through on his own. But he didn’t know what else to say to placate Taako. “I…it’s just…hm.” A thought occurred to him. “You’re close with Merle, right? Has he ever mentioned a Pan-Religious Temple of Pan?”

Taako snorted. “Only, like, every other conversation. And it’s just the Pan-Religious Temple. It’s only a temple of Pan when Merle’s there.”

Kravitz still wasn’t clear on how that worked, but he figured he’d find out when he went. “I...when I was looking into the…the Raven Queen, I wound up asking him about her, and he told me to try there. Do you know anything about it?”

He shook his head. “Religion’s not really my bag. I figure there’s either a god or eight out there or there isn’t, and if there is then they don’t like me all that much most of the time, so why bother?”

“Right.” Kravitz tapped his thumbs together and tried to find a way to phrase his request. “I was thinking about checking it out. It’s my only lead at the moment and all that.” Taako nodded and Kravitz took a breath. “But I…I don’t think I want to go by myself. And I’m not sure who else to ask.”

“Are you asking me to go with you?” Taako asked gently.

Kravitz nodded. “I…yes, I am. Would you come with me? Even just to check it out? I’m not asking you to worship or anything, but…after Wonderland, I don’t…I don’t want to go anywhere like that by myself.”

“Can’t say as I blame you, bubelah.” Taako took Kravitz’s hand in his. “Hell yeah I’ll go with you. Not gonna ditch my boy when he needs backup; that’d make me kind of a shitty wizard, huh?”

Kravitz laughed aloud. “I only said you _might_ have been a wizard.” He hadn’t seen the hat in a while, so maybe he’d been wrong on that front.

“Fuck you, I’m a wizard.” Taako stuck out his tongue. “But yeah, I’ll go with you to the spooky temple if you want. Gonna fight me some _ghosts_.” Kravitz didn’t think the temple was haunted, necessarily, but he appreciated the thought. “Listen, we’ve still got like…half a bottle of wine. Why don’t we finish that up and…” He trailed off, gesturing vaguely. “See where the night takes us, yeah?”

Kravitz smiled and picked up the bottle to refill his glass. “That sounds like a plan to me.”

~~~

The bricks of Taako’s apartment building were rough against Kravitz’s back as Taako pushed him up against the wall, but he didn’t have much time to register it before Taako’s mouth was on his in a sloppy kiss. He wrapped one arm around Taako’s waist and buried his other hand in his messy bun, untangling it enough that he could grip it properly. He would never be over kissing Taako. Kissing Taako was what he’d been _made_ for, it was the only thing that mattered in his life. Kravitz clung to him like his life depended on it and kissed Taako with everything his soul could give.

Taako’s hands gripped the front of Kravitz’s vest so tight he vaguely wondered if he was going to rip it off of him right there on the sidewalk, but then he abruptly broke the kiss, chest heaving against Kravitz’s. “So,” he panted, trying to sound casual and failing, “I don’t know about you, Krav, but I’m liking the direction tonight is going.” Kravitz nodded enthusiastically and tried to kiss Taako again, but was stopped by a finger over his lips. “But I think I’d rather continue this upstairs, maybe? In my apartment? Unless exhibitionism is your thing; Taako ain’t gonna judge.” Kravitz flushed and Taako grinned. “Guess not. But upstairs? Wanna spend the night again?”

Kravitz wanted nothing more than to spend another night with Taako, to spend as many nights as he could falling asleep beside him and as many mornings as he could waking up next to him. But he had—he had responsibilities, didn't he? A concert tomorrow night to get ready for, and his aunt was coming to visit so he needed to get going early to clean his apartment and make sure there was food in the fridge so she wouldn’t lecture him about taking care of himself, and if he stayed over at Taako’s tonight would he be able to—

Taako leaned down and bit the side of Kravitz’s neck gently, and the decision was made for him. “Taako,” he breathed, “we need to be in your apartment in the next minute and a half or I’m going to lose my mind.”

He _felt_ Taako grin against his neck and shuddered. “I think that can be arranged.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I miiiiight post another NSFW side fic? I've been thinking lately that I'd like to write more side fics for Echoes that focus on other characters to help build and flesh out the world as seen from other characters' points of view. I have a few in mind already, but please let me know in the comments if that's something you'd be interested in! ~~I'll probably end up doing them anyway even if nobody's interested in them lmao~~


	16. Aunt Paloma, Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz really should know better than to expect Aunt Paloma to give him anything resembling a straight answer.
> 
> Also, birds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to work on my work for the Adventure Bang, but the website that I use to write locked me out so I can only view files now. I already had this written so y'all are getting this earlier than intended because I need something to do or I'll _die_.
> 
> Also if you missed it, I posted another NSFW oneshot. It's in the Echoes series or [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15563262). Please love me

Kravitz sat bolt upright, shaking and sweating. Oh god, oh fuck, there was something coming and he was trapped and alone and the world was ending and—

An arm flopped across his lap. “Krav?” Taako mumbled sleepily. “You good?”

Slowly, his eyes adjusted to the darkness. There was nothing after him, there was nothing that was going to hurt him. He was in Taako’s apartment, in his bed. He was safe.

He swallowed and lay back down beside Taako. “I—just had a bad dream, that’s all.”

“Aw, fuck,” Taako said, scooting closer to snuggle into Kravitz’s chest. “You gonna be good?”

“I’ll be fine.” Running his fingers through Taako’s hair was soothing for him, and slowly he felt his breathing begin to even out.

“Mm,” Taako grunted. He latched onto Kravitz and fell asleep again. Kravitz closed his eyes. He probably wouldn’t be getting much more sleep tonight, but he could at least rest alongside Taako.

It was nice, he thought, not to wake up alone.

~~~

Taako made a big show of not wanting to get out of bed when his alarm went off, clinging tighter to Kravitz and moaning. “You have work,” Kravitz reminded him. “And Davenport’s sick.”

“Uuuuugh, I knoooow,” Taako whined, but he rolled over and turned off his alarm. He immediately rolled back into Kravitz and snuggled into him again. “Five more minutes.”

“Taako.” Kravitz shook him a little. “You _like_ your job, remember?”

Taako grinned sleepily up at him, and even in the darkness his smile warmed Kravitz’s heart. “Yeah, but I like being here with _you_ more.”

Kravitz pushed him. “Now who’s the sap? Go on, get up. I have to get up too, you know.”

Taako sat up, pouting as Kravitz gently pushed him away and swung his legs off the bed. “You’re no fun.”

He cast a smirk over his shoulder. “That’s not what you said last night.”

Was it just him, or was Taako blushing? It was hard to see in the dark. “That’s—asshole.” Taako flopped back onto the bed. “Fine, I’ll get up. Can you get the light?”

Kravitz fumbled at the wall, looking for the light switch. He winced when he flicked it on and light suddenly flooded the room. Taako sat up, chin in his hands, and stared appreciatively at Kravitz’s naked body. “I—” He swallowed. “I’ll just go get my trousers.” He hurried into the bathroom, where he’d left his pants and trousers the night before. How Taako could be so shameless was beyond him.

Mercifully, his clothes were dry, though he’d definitely still have to throw them in the laundry when he got home. He ran over a quick list of things he had to do today—he had to pick up the suit he’d be wearing tonight from the dry cleaner’s, and he needed to clean up his apartment so Aunt Paloma didn’t give him the judgmental stink-eye when she came over. He’d also have to get her from the train station, and get some cash from the bank so they could take a taxi. Generally, Kravitz walked everywhere and had a few bus tickets for the few places he couldn’t reach on foot in a reasonable timeframe, but he wasn’t going to subject his ancient aunt to all that walking. She’d keel over before they got to the concert hall, let alone his apartment.

He ran some water and did his best to wash his face without looking in the mirror. By the time he came out again, Taako was fully dressed and eating toast on the couch. Kravitz’s shirt and vest were next to him, and when Kravitz came into the room they were tossed at him. “You’re gonna need those,” Taako said breezily. “Toast?”

“No, thank you,” Kravitz said politely. “I wouldn’t want to impose.”

Taako rolled his eyes. “You’re not _imposing_ , doofus. Go eat a breakfast.”

“I have food at my place—”

“Do you, though?” Taako squinted at him. “ _Do_ you?”

Kravitz coughed. “I have cereal. And milk. And…I’m sure there are vegetables.”

“We _just_ did groceries, like, two days ago. You’d _better_ still have food.”

He folded his arms. “I’m a grown man, Taako. I can make my own breakfast.”

Taako looked like he was going to retort, but his phone beeped and he swore. “Gotta go. If I don’t leave in a couple minutes I’ll be late.”

Kravitz threw on his shirt and quickly made sure he had all his things before joining Taako at the door. “I’ll, um. I probably won’t be coming by today,” he said apologetically. “I have a concert tonight, and my aunt is coming to visit.”

Taako nodded, locking the door behind them. “That’s cool, my dude. Text me though, okay? Let me know how shit goes.” He elbowed Kravitz as they walked down the hall together. “And we gotta figure a time to go see that Temple and shit. When’re you free?”

He’d remembered. Kravitz smiled. “Uh, let’s see. I’ve got concerts every night except Tuesday and Thursday next week. After that we’re going back to rehearsals for a week, and then concerts again. Other than that, I’m open.”

“Hachi machi, you’re a popular guy.”

“Not really.” Kravitz shrugged. “This is the start of our season. It gets busy fast.”

“Mm. Well, I’m busy every morning.” They’d reached the front door of the building by now, and stood facing each other on the sidewalk. “I’m stuck at the Starblaster until one on weekdays and noon on weekends. So Tuesday or Thursday afternoon is probably what’s gonna work?”

“Something like that.” Kravitz wondered if he should kiss Taako goodbye. “We’ll figure that out later.” He should, shouldn’t he? “We should probably get going.”

“Yeah.” Taako didn’t go anywhere, rocking back on his heels for a minute. He leaned up and kissed Kravitz gently on the lips. “Have a good one, babe. Break a leg and stuff.”

Kravitz beamed the whole way back to his apartment.

~~~

The two ravens were waiting for him on his fire escape when he opened his bedroom curtains. Kravitz warily opened the window. “Obsidian and Pitch, right?” he asked. They cocked their heads, watching him. He swallowed. “You...you’ve been watching me, haven’t you? Is there something I should know?”

The one on the left—Obsidian—cawed once and bobbed his head towards the windowsill. Looking down, Kravitz saw even more shiny trinkets littering the sill. He sighed and scooped them up. “I told you to stop bringing me things,” he scolded. “Where do you even get this stuff from, anyway?” Pitch cawed and flapped her wings. “No, seriously. Stop it.” Kravitz slammed the window shut but left the curtains open. He turned and deposited his new baubles on his dresser with the rest. A few shiny buttons, the back of a pin, and a single earring shaped like a bird skull. He shook his head. Well, they were staying on brand, at least.

Oddly enough, the new buttons looked identical to the ones they’d brought him the other day. He picked two up to examine. Shiny, gold, round, the kind that had a loop on the back instead of holes through the middle. They looked familiar, though he was sure none of his suits had anything so ostentatious on them.

Well, it wasn’t a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Ravens liked shiny stuff, that was all. Why they were bringing it to _him_ instead of hoarding it like feathery black dragons was beyond him, but he decided not to think about it. He had an apartment to clean.

After seeing the state of Taako’s apartment, particularly his bedroom, Kravitz didn’t feel _too_ bad about how messy his place was. At least he washed his dishes on a regular basis and his laundry was relegated to one basket in the corner of his closet. He put his books back on the shelf, swept and vacuumed the floors, and took out the trash before declaring himself done and pouring himself a bowl of cereal. He’d have to wash the dishes before Aunt Paloma came over, and he added that to his list of things to do.

He still needed to pick up his suit from the dry cleaner’s, so he headed out to do that and pick up a few extra groceries. A loud _caw_ startled him, and as he looked up Obsidian and Pitch flew down from their perch on his fire escape to follow him. Kravitz scowled. “No, go on, shoo. Stop following me. I have things to do; you can’t come.”

They circled him, still cawing. Kravitz rubbed his face with one hand and flapped the other at the birds. “Go. Get. Shoo.”

A heavy weight settled on his outstretched arm and he stumbled. Obsidian had apparently taken his shooing as an invitation to land on him. Ravens were a lot heavier than he’d thought they were, and Kravitz struggled to keep his arm up with the sudden unexpected weight. “Oh, don’t go giving me this guff,” he grumbled. “I’m busy. Don’t you two have places to be?” Pitch landed on a nearby sign and cawed. People passed by them on the sidewalk, giving Kravitz strange looks and a wide berth as he argued with a couple of _very stubborn_ birds. “I don’t have anything for you. Go home.”

Thankfully, they finally seemed to take that as a sign to leave, taking off and wheeling into the sky, still cawing. Kravitz dusted off his shirtsleeve and glared at a man who stared at him. “Yes?” he asked curtly. The man looked away and scurried off, and Kravitz sighed. He needed answers fast. These fucking birds were going to be the death of him.

~~~

Kravitz wrapped his arms around his aunt. “You made it!” he said. “Jack got you to the train station alright?”

Aunt Paloma’s tiny arms barely reached around him as she hugged him back. “Kravitz, dear, you need to stop worrying so much! Yes, I am here, am I not?”

He let her go and picked up her overnight bag. “You were supposed to text me when you were leaving,” he said accusingly.

“I _tried_ ,” she insisted, following him out of the train station. “You know what cell service is like in Refuge. Also I have a hard time reading these tiny screen fonts.”

Kravitz sighed. He’d offered to help her find the accessibility settings on her phone and increase the font size a hundred times, but she always refused. “If you say so,” he said. “Anyway, I was thinking of getting us a taxi to the apartment and then going for a quick bite before the show. Does that work for you?”

She nodded. “That sounds excellent. Oh, by the way.” She dug around in her purse and pulled out her wallet.

He knew where this was going and held up his hand before she could open it. “Absolutely not.” Aunt Paloma frowned and opened her mouth to speak, but he put his hands over hers and guided her wallet back to her purse. “I told you, it’s a _complimentary_ ticket. Everyone involved with the orchestra gets a couple for the season. You don’t owe me any money; please stop trying to pay me for these.” He turned and waved down a taxi, holding the door open for her.

Aunt Paloma squinted at him, but got in the cab. “Well, I’m at least paying for dinner.”

“Auntie—”

She held up a finger, looking up at him sternly. “No buts! Let me spoil my favourite nephew!”

~~~

Johann was pacing backstage. He nearly jumped out of his skin when Kravitz put a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t scare me like that,” he said.

“Sorry.” Kravitz put his hand in his pocket instead. “Are you alright? You look nervous.”

“I’m fine.” Johann looked over Kravitz’s shoulder, towards the stage. “Just. First performance with this crew, is all.”

Kravitz nodded. “I know the feeling. The first concert I conducted here, I was afraid I’d drop my baton because my palms were so sweaty.”

Johann took a shaky breath. “It…uh, well, it isn’t just that." He gestured to the audience. “There’s someone out there who’s here just to watch me, and…uh, that’s a little embarrassing, honestly? But also if I fuck up—”

“You won’t,” Kravitz said confidently. “You’re the best violinist ever, right? You’ve never messed up once during rehearsal. You write your own sheet music, for crying out loud. You’ll be absolutely fine. Trust me.” Johann didn't look like he felt much better. “Also, ah, if it helps.” Kravitz cleared his throat. “I’m always more nervous on nights where I know my aunt’s in the audience, too.”

That made Johann crack a smile. “Thanks.”

Kravitz laid a hand on his shoulder again, and this time Johann didn’t flinch. “Come on. Let’s get this show on the road.”

~~~

The concert went off without a hitch, and Kravitz was beaming as he stepped out the backstage door into the lobby. He spotted Aunt Paloma waiting near the entrance, chatting with Avi, and he hurried over before they could tell each other any embarrassing stories about him.

“There he is!” Aunt Paloma said, opening her arms wide for a hug as Kravitz approached. “A wonderful job tonight, sweetheart.”

Avi slapped him on the back. “Sounded great! I got to sneak in for a couple songs for once. Your aunt was just telling me about how you used to conduct along with the radio when you were a kid.”

Kravitz flushed and looked pleadingly at his aunt. His haste had been for nothing, apparently. “Auntie...”

She waved him off. “It was sweet.”

“Well, it’s late,” Kravitz declared, ushering Aunt Paloma towards the door. She and Avi were _absolutely_ not allowed to become friends. “See you tomorrow, Avi!”

He could hear Avi laughing at him as they stepped outside into the cool night air. Aunt Paloma wrapped her shawl tighter around herself and looked around as Kravitz hailed them another cab. “You really have done very well for yourself out here,” she said. “I am proud of you, Kravitz.”

Kravitz ducked his head with pride as the taxi pulled up. “Thank you.”

She patted his arm and got in the car. “So, tomorrow. I get to meet your boy, yes?” He choked and she laughed. “If you will not bring him to visit me in Refuge, I will come to visit him here!”

“We’ve only known each other for a week!” Kravitz protested, fussing with his seatbelt to avoid looking at her. “And we only started dating two days ago!”

“Aha!” She clapped her hands together. “So you _are_ dating now! I was not sure.”

Kravitz hunched his shoulders and folded his arms. “You—I don’t have to tell you _everything_ , Auntie.” He was glad she was happy for him and supported him, but did she have to be such an embarrassing old lady about it?

Aunt Paloma took one of his hands in both of hers. “I do worry for you, you know,” she said quietly. “I hardly ever hear you talk about the people in your life here. Even when you were in Rockport, all you ever seemed to talk about were your classes and how there was nothing but Tom Bodett ads on television. Never people. When you speak of Taako, you light up like the sun.” She smiled. “Especially when you are blushing like a teenage girl!”

“Auntie!”

She squeezed his hand. “I want nothing more than for you to be happy, Kravitz. You know this, yes?”

He did know it. He always had. But there was a treacherous part of him that felt like if she really wanted him to be happy, she wouldn’t keep secrets.

~~~

“There is someone at your window.”

Kravitz looked up at his aunt from the couch, squinting groggily without his glasses. “What?”

She pointed at his bedroom, where he’d insisted she sleep while he took the couch. “At your bedroom window. Someone is on your fire escape, tapping at your window.” She looked worried. “Is that normal for Neverwinter?”

He groaned and pushed himself upright, rubbing his eyes. “No, just for me. What time is it?”

“Just after eight.” She was already dressed and ready to go. Her hair was even pulled back into its usual tight bun. He wondered if being a morning person was something that came with age.

“Okay,” he sighed. “Give me a few minutes.”

She started bustling around his kitchen as he put on his glasses and headed for his bedroom. Damn birds. Hadn’t he told them to leave him alone?

“You’d better not have brought me any more shinies,” he said as soon as he opened the window. Pitch cawed rather indignantly, flapping her wings. “No, I don’t care _how_ hard you had to work to get them,” he retorted, and good lord he was arguing with a _bird_. “Go home. I don’t have anything for you.” What did ravens eat, anyway? Besides roadkill? Maybe if he fed them they’d leave him alone, although that was usually the opposite of how wild animals worked.

Obsidian squawked and bobbed his head a few times. Kravitz pinched the bridge of his nose and counted to ten in his head. “Look, unless you have something important to tell me, you really shouldn’t be here,” he told them. “Don’t you have somewhere you should be?”

“Kravitz?” He froze. Aunt Paloma was right next to him, a concerned look on her face. “Are you...do you know these birds?”

He glared at them. “Not really. They just come by every day to bring me little shiny things.” He waved towards his dresser. “I keep telling them they need to leave, but they’re _stubborn_ and won’t listen.”

She didn’t look any less concerned. “I...see,” she said. Was it him, or had her face paled a few shades? Must have been the lighting. “Kravitz, remind me later, we should have a little chat.” She disappeared out of his bedroom before he could say anything.  
Kravitz stood there with his mouth hanging open for a moment before shutting his window and throwing on some clothes. Aunt Paloma _definitely_ knew something about the Raven Queen and these birds in particular. He had to get to the bottom of what she knew before she left.

Before he left, he stuck his head out his window again. “Go home,” he told them. They cawed at him, but took to the sky one after the other. A few feathers floated down, and after a moment’s hesitation he reached out and scooped them up to add to his dresser collection. He wasn’t sure what drove him to do it, but he tried not to think about it as he locked his window and went out to his aunt.

~~~

The Starblaster wasn’t very far from Kravitz’s apartment. For Kravitz, a fairly young and fit man, it was barely a ten minute walk. For Aunt Paloma, who was a million years old and had probably never so much as prancercised a day in her life, it was another story. Still, she insisted on walking, saying it was good for her bones. “I am not so feeble as to not be able to walk for ten minutes,” she said. She linked arms with Kravitz. “You worry too much. I will be fine.”

The walk had left her slightly winded, and Kravitz made a mental note to insist on getting a taxi back, and then another one to the train station when she was due to leave. Just because she _could_ handle the walk didn’t mean she _should_. She looked around the Starblaster, a little smile on her face. “What a lovely place,” she said. “Not the sort of aesthetic one might expect from a place called the Starblaster, but a nice little find all the same.”

Magnus was at the counter when they got to the front of the line, with Lup running around behind him filling orders. “Hey!” Magnus said, giving Kravitz his usual giant grin. He always gave Kravitz the impression of a Bernese Mountain Dog—huge and intimidating, but full of joy and love. “We’re, uh, a little crazy here right now.”

“Is Davenport still sick?” Kravitz asked.

“Nah.” Magnus shrugged. “But the café’s been way busier lately for some reason. We’ve all been rushed off our feet. Dad’nport keeps talking about hiring more staff, but so far that’s just talk.” He glanced back at Lup, who was hurriedly mixing what looked like a latte. “D’you know if Taako's due for a break sometime?”

“Ask him,” Lup said. She looked exhausted. There were dark circles under her eyes and her hair was a mess, even under the hair net. Her long ears twitched, and Kravitz wasn’t sure if that was a product of his sight or her stress.

Magnus smiled apologetically at Kravitz. “Well, uh, if you want, I can tell him you’re here.”

“Yes, please,” Aunt Paloma said before Kravitz could tell him not to worry about it. Magnus looked down at her, not bothering to hide his confusion. “I would very much like to meet this boy that my nephew has spoken so much of.”

Kravitz groaned. “Auntie, please.”

Magnus grinned, and Kravitz absolutely did not like the look in his eyes. “Yeah, no problem, ma’am. So, uh. What’ll you have?”

They ordered and Aunt Paloma paid by virtue of having her wallet out faster than Kravitz did. Kravitz shook his head as they stood to the side to wait for their order to be ready. “Auntie, you know you don’t have to pay for everything anymore. I’m an adult; I have a good job. I can afford to treat you sometimes.”

Aunt Paloma laughed. “What fun is being an old auntie if I can’t treat my nephew to nice things?”

“What fun is being a well-to-do nephew if I can’t treat my auntie to nice things?” he countered. “You always had to pay for everything when I was growing up. Can’t I do this for you now?”

She smiled and took her tea from Lup. “I will be honest, I do not have much to spend my money on these days. I would rather spend it on you than on useless trinkets I do not need.”

He sighed. This was a recurring argument, and one that he’d never won. He had a feeling it was one he’d never win, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t keep trying. Lup handed him his coffee, giving him a tired, lopsided grin. “Well,” he said, “let’s find a seat. I believe you had some things you wanted to talk to me about.”

Aunt Paloma nodded absently, stirring milk into her tea. He wasn’t sure she’d heard him, so he opened his mouth, but she glanced over her shoulder and the look on her face stopped him cold. He’d never seen her looking so serious before, not even when she was in one of her fortune-telling trances. “Go have a seat,” she said. Her voice was still pleasant and friendly, but something about her was bone-chilling. “I’ll be there in a moment.”

Kravitz nodded, willing himself not to shake as he turned and found them a table in a corner, as far away from other people as he could get. Maybe he would have preferred having this conversation somewhere private, but if Aunt Paloma was finally willing to have it at all, he wasn’t going to put it off. He needed any answers she had. Literally anything would be better than nothing at this point.

She sat in the chair across from him, hands wrapped around her china mug. “The nice girl at the counter said she would bring us our pastries in a few minutes,” she said. Kravitz glanced at the front. Lup was still rushing around to get drink and to-go orders filled. They probably had more than a few minutes. “So,” Aunt Paloma said, looking steadily at Kravitz, “you have had quite the busy few days.”

He took of his glasses and rubbed his face. “God, where do I even start?”

“Conventional wisdom and Julie Andrews both tell us that the beginning is a very good place to start.”

Christ, he was more like his aunt than he’d thought. “I…Auntie, I know it’s more than just retrocognition at play here.” She nodded, still watching him. “There’s…I have a scythe?”

She sucked a breath through her teeth. “Oh.”

“So you know something about that.” He wrapped his hands around hers. “Auntie, I am _begging_ you, if you know something about me, you _have_ to tell me. Please, I…I feel like I’m going insane. There’s a scythe, and I can use it to _teleport_ , and I know things I shouldn’t, and there are two ravens following me around and bringing me things, and there’s a _death goddess_ involved now—”

“Slow down.” Aunt Paloma took a breath. “Kravitz, I wish…I wish there was more I could tell you.”

His face fell. “What?”

“Please understand,” she said. “I want more than anything to give you all the answers. But they are not mine too give. Do you understand?”

“No.” He withdrew his hands and clenched them into fists in his lap. “I _don’t_ understand. And that’s the problem. Isn’t there _anything_ you can give me to go off of?”

“There is some.” She sipped her tea, looking over his shoulder, lost in thought for a long moment. “You mentioned a death goddess. What is her name?”

“The Raven Queen.” He frowned. “You’re the one who told me her name.”

Aunt Paloma shrugged. “In any case, yes, the Raven Queen is the goddess of the balance between life and death, queen of the afterlife, mother to ravens. At least, according to some legends. Rather obscure ones, at that. Not many know of her. I think she prefers it that way; she is a solitary sort of goddess.”

He smiled weakly. “You sound like you know her.”

She actually laughed at that. “No, of course not. But when you are in my business for as long as I have been, you learn a thing or two. Yes, even about ‘death goddesses,’ as you put it.”

Kravitz stared into his coffee. “Is…is there a connection between her and these...weird _things_ I can do?”

“Yes.”

The word was a punch to his gut. His head snapped up to look at her, mouth hanging open. “You—yes? Just like that?”

“Kravitz, please understand.” She folded her hands and gave him the same serious look from before. “I made a promise, a long time ago, when you were just a baby. There are some things I cannot tell you outright unless you already know them for yourself.” She smiled sadly. “And I think you already knew the answer to your question.”

He felt sick. “Who...who did you promise?” His mouth felt like it was full of cotton.

Aunt Paloma closed her eyes and took a breath, seemingly to steady herself. “When you were first born, your mother asked me to take care of you, because she could not. She made me promise never to speak directly to you about her. I wish I could tell you more than that, but a promise is a promise, especially when it has been sealed.”

“Sealed?” he repeated weakly. His world was crashing down around his ears. His mother, the woman he got his powers from, who presumably also had some kind of connection to the Raven Queen, didn’t want him knowing anything about her or his powers or _anything_ to the point that she’d made the person who was supposed to raise him promise not to tell him anything about it.

“It is…one of her abilities,” Aunt Paloma said. “I cannot tell you anything you do not already know, unless…” She trailed off, pulling out her purse and fishing around in it for a minute. “Aha!” Triumphantly, she pulled out very familiar worn deck of cards and began shuffling them. “She has no domain over my own abilities. How about we exploit this little loophole?”

“Are you sure?” he asked. “Here?” Generally speaking, Aunt Paloma didn’t do her fortunetelling outside of her own home. The trances she went into made her vulnerable, and people often found them unnerving.

She nodded once, decisively. “Yes. Draw a card, and we will see what I can tell you.”

A plate landed next to Kravitz’s elbow, and he jumped. Lup was standing beside their table, holding a second plate. “Danish and a turnover,” she said, putting the other plate in front of Aunt Paloma. “Kravitz, you don’t happen to know anyone looking for work, do you?”

He shook his head and tried to smile. This was a bad time. He didn’t want to be having a casual conversation right now. “Unfortunately, no.”

She scowled. “Damn. Guess I’ll die.” With that, she turned and headed back towards the counter. The line looked like it had thinned out a little, at least.

Aunt Paloma held the tarot deck out towards him. “Close your eyes and choose. Quickly now, I suspect I can only do this once.”

Kravitz didn’t ask why, just drew a card and laid it facedown on the table. Aunt Paloma set the rest of the deck aside and turned the card over, revealing the Ace of Cups. Kravitz frowned, trying to remember what that meant. It was a generally positive card, he knew that much. He looked at Aunt Paloma’s face just in time to see her eyes go glassy, getting a faraway look. “You have all you need around you already,” she said. Her voice was just as eerily deep and loud as it always was, but nobody seemed to be paying them any attention. “You are awaited at the temple. Not all the answers you seek will be found there, but it is the next step in your journey. Trust the birds, both the seven and the guides.”

She blinked, and her eyes were back to normal. Kravitz hadn’t realised he was holding his breath. “I think that raised more questions than it answered,” he said. That was the second reference to the seven birds in one of his aunt’s prophecies about him. He still didn’t know anything about them. He hadn’t even gotten anything about them out of Wonderland.

Aunt Paloma shuffled the Ace of Cups back into the deck, then looked at it for a long moment before holding it out to him. “Here,” she said simply. “Take this.”

He hesitated. “But...that’s your favourite tarot deck. You’ve had it for decades.”

“It is a loan.” She shrugged. “At this point, I believe you could use it more than I. You remember how to use it, yes?”

“Of course,” he lied. He would have to pick up a book on tarot after she left.

“Do a quick reading every day,” she said. “I think it will help you.” She pressed the deck into his hand. “You are a smart boy, Kravitz. You always were. I believe you will figure out what to do from here.”

The cards felt heavy in his hand. Another thing to add to the long list of things he didn't understand. “Thank you.”

“Krav!”

His ears perked up at the familiar voice, and he stood as Taako hurried across the cafe towards him. He skidded to a stop in front of him, beaming. “Only just got away,” he said. “I’ve only got a few minutes; it’s Saturday, so I’ve got Boy Wonder there in the back.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. Kravitz wanted to kiss every single one of his freckles, but he contented himself with a quick kiss on the lips instead. He could see Taako’s wizard hat today, along with a semi-visible umbrella hooked over one arm for some reason.

Aunt Paloma cleared her throat. “Oh, right, sorry,” Kravitz said. “Taako, this is my Aunt Paloma. Auntie, this is Taako.”

Taako gave her an easy grin. “What’s up?”

She laced her fingers under her chin and looked Taako up and down. “My,” she said. “It seems Kravitz was not exaggerating your beauty.”

Kravitz’s face burned. “Auntie!”

Taako preened, but even from this angle Kravitz could see he was red in the face. “Hell yeah, ch’boy’s a catch.”

Angus appeared at Taako's elbow. “Sir—oh, hello sir,” he said to Kravitz. “Sir, the oven is making a weird noise.”

Taako waved him off. “That’s the timer, Ango, it means you’ve gotta take the shit out of the thing.”

“No, it’s not that. It’s, um. Rattling?”

Taako grimaced. “Fuck.”

Kravitz took his hand. “You have to go deal with this, right?”

He blew a stray hair out of his face. “Yeah. Sorry, Krav. I’d love to stay and chat, but, uh, duty calls.” He leaned up and kissed Kravitz on the cheek before turning to Aunt Paloma. “Sorry to cut and run. Uh, nice to meet you.”

Her eyes were twinkling in a way that Kravitz did _not_ like. “Likewise. We should meet and trade recipes sometime.”

Taako faltered. “Uh, recipes, yeah. I do those. My own, I mean. Anyway, gotta go!” He practically dragged Angus away, waving over his shoulder. Kravitz blinked. What had that been about? He knew Taako was leery about his cooking, but he hadn’t realised to what extent. He filed it away as something to talk about with Taako later.

“He seemed nice,” Aunt Paloma said innocently. “Are he and Lup related?”

Kravitz nodded. “Twins.”

“Hm.” She looked thoughtful for a moment, then shook it off and stood up. “Well. I believe I have a train to catch.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obsidian and Pitch are my only Adventure Zone OCs and I love them so much. They are very very stupid birds and I love them.


	17. A Favour That Needed Returning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oops.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _Tarot for Beginners: A Practical Guide to Reading the Cards_ by Barbara Moore is a real book that I now own, because buying things for fanfiction research is a good idea I guess. I also have tarot cards now. I guess. (I was gonna have it be another book by Dr. Maureen Miller but then I got this book so lmao)
> 
> Basically any time I have Kravitz do a reading I'm going to be getting my interpretations from this book. I'll try to cross-reference with Wikipedia, but the book will be my main source. I had a real hard time finding any tarot websites that looked anything close to reliable, and I'm sure the book isn't that much more reliable but it's called "for beginners" so at least Kravitz and I have some starting blocks.
> 
> Also: [this](https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/questions/9573/what-should-i-feed-ravens-crows) is the website that I got "ravens like peanuts" from, so if that's wrong you can blame them, not me.

An arm draped itself over Kravitz’s shoulders. “Hey, babe, what’re you working on?”

Kravitz smiled up at Taako. “Just a little pet project.” He closed his eyes as Taako leaned down to kiss him. “Aunt Paloma suggested I start doing tarot readings for myself, so I had to get a book for it.” He held up the book he’d just purchased at the Bureau of Books so Taako could see it. _Tarot for Beginners: A Practical Guide to Reading the Cards_ by Barbara Moore was one that he knew his aunt had, so it was probably at least somewhat reliable.

“Huh.” Taako slid into the seat across from Kravitz. “I’ve only got a few minutes, but it’s good to see you, bubelah.”

Kravitz reached across the table and took Taako’s hand. “I appreciate you taking time out of your break to visit with me. You know you don’t have to do that.”

Taako waved him off. “And let you miss seeing this handsome face? No way.” Kravitz laughed. “But, uh, hey, so are we still good for Tuesday? You know the Pan-Religious Temple is kinda out of town, right? Do you have, like…a car?”

“Oh.” Kravitz frowned. “Is…I was planning on taking a bus or something; is there no bus service there? Do we have to drive? Because I—I could get us a taxi instead, that isn’t a problem—”

“Nah, there’s a bus.” Taako looked at the ceiling thoughtfully. “I think. Like I said, I’ve never been there. Maybe ask Merle? I dunno if he buses it or gets Davenport to drive him; he can’t drive for _shit_.”

Kravitz chuckled. “I’ll look it up later and text you once I know what’s going on.”

“Cool.” Taako was grinning. “Gotta say, a temple is a kinda weird choice for a second date? But I dig it.”

“It’s—” Kravitz cleared his throat, his face burning. “It’s not necessarily a _date_ , if you don’t want it to be. Just—you’re the only one I can ask to do this with me.”

Taako’s face fell. “Oh.”

Realising that he’d sounded like he didn’t want to go on a date with Taako, Kravitz stammered “That is, uh, not to say, that. Um.” He was an idiot. “I mean, we can also go on a date. To somewhere else. For dinner maybe?” He squeezed Taako’s hand tight. “I just—you’re right, a temple is kind of a non-traditional date spot, so maybe we do something else that’s a date afterwards.”

“Right.” Taako still sounded unsure, but he stood and came around the table, leaning in for another kiss. “I gotta head back to work, though, so I’ll talk to you later, okay?”

“Sure.” Kravitz watched Taako head for the back, trying not to read too much into the fact that Taako hadn't called him a single pet name after his fuckup.

~~~

“Let me guess,” Kravitz said, sitting on the edge of his bedroom window with his feet on the fire escape. “Nevermore?”

Pitch stopped preening to look unblinkingly at him, and Kravitz got the distinct feeling he was being glared at. “It’s not _my_ fault there’s a very famous poem called The Raven,” he said. He reached into the plastic shopping bag he’d brought out with him. “Alright, I did some research, and according to the internet you kids like peanuts.” The website he looked at said that ravens were opportunistic scavengers and ate a lot of carrion, but he wasn’t going scrounging around for roadkill, and the mice at the pet store were expensive, so peanuts would have to do. He dumped a handful on the fire escape, and Obsidian immediately jumped down and grabbed one, smacking it against the railing until it cracked. “Okay then.” Kravitz watched them eat for a minute, leaning back against the window. Whether or not they had any real connection to him, these ravens were taken with him. They kept bringing him things—they even brought Taako to him when he was feeling low. They almost seemed to legitimately care about him.

“You—I’m sure you can’t really answer this,” Kravitz started. Obsidian looked up at him and cawed twice. “Okay. Um, once for yes, twice for no? But do you—are you—is there some connection between you and the Raven Queen?”  
Both ravens stopped eating and stared up at him silently. He sighed and stood up. “Didn’t think so. Enjoy the peanuts.”

As he was going back inside, he heard one of them caw once. He paused, but ignored it. It must have been a coincidence.

~~~

He had nearly a dozen texts and three missed calls, all from Taako. Kravitz shoved his gym clothes back into his bag and fumbled with his phone in an effort to check his messages as quickly as possible.

_hey krav_  
_jsut. havin a moment_  
_can u call me when u get a chance_  
_krav i no ur busy but_  
_pls_  
_im freakin out_  
_hey its taako. im fine, everythings cool_  
_dont worry about it, just ignore all that_  
_im fine :)_

Kravitz called Taako immediately, changing his shoes while the phone rang. He was greeted with Taako’s answering service. “Hey, you’ve reached Taako, you know, from TV? Leave a uuuuuhhhhh message? Ciao.”

Well, that clearly wasn't going anywhere. He hung up and sent a text asking if Taako was alright.

Avi stuck his head over Kravitz’s shoulder, trying to look at his screen. “What’s up?”

He elbowed Avi away. “Nothing, it’s fine. Sorry to cut and run, but I have to get going.”

“Nah, that’s cool." Avi stripped off his sweaty gym shirt and grabbed the shirt he’d walked in wearing from his gym bag. “We still good for Thursday? Hogsbottom again?”

Kravitz nodded absently, checking his phone again. No answer. “Yeah, sure. Sounds great.”

“And you’ve gotta bring Taako,” Avi added, pointing at Kravitz. “I haven’t met him yet.”

“Right,” Kravitz said, tucking his phone in a pocket. He’d try again when he got back to his apartment. His head snapped up as he suddenly realised what he’d agreed to. “Well—wait, I—”

“Nope!” Avi was beaming, his smile stretching ear to ear. “You said you’d do it! No backing out now!”

Kravitz shook his head. “I’ll—I’ll ask him, how’s that? He might be busy.”

Avi squinted at him, but nodded after a long moment. “Alright, but you’d better at least ask him. I wanna meet this mystery coffee boy you keep talking about.”

~~~

  
_Taako, is everything alright?_  
_Taako, please answer me._  
_I’m sorry I didn’t get your messages, I was at the gym._  
_Taako?_  


It had been an hour, and still Kravitz hadn’t gotten any response from Taako. He weighed his options. On the one hand, he only had an hour until he had to leave for the concert hall or he’d be late and the stage manager would yell at him again. He wouldn’t have time to walk to Taako’s, talk with him, and walk to the concert hall. On the other, Taako had texted him—had _needed_ him—and he hadn’t been there for him. Taako had been there for Kravitz through so much already, and Kravitz hadn’t been able to return the favour.

His hands itched, and a thought occurred to him. His scythe. If he just walked into Taako’s kitchen again, he’d have plenty of time. Taako probably wouldn’t be particularly happy if he essentially broke into his apartment again, but at this point, Kravitz would just have to deal with it.

He checked to make sure he was ready to go—wallet, keys, phone, nice suit—before reaching out and summoning his scythe. Hopefully, Taako would forgive him.

When Kravitz stepped through his portal, Taako whirled to face him. He was standing in front of the sink in a baggy t-shirt and rainbow-printed pajama pants, staring at Kravitz with wide, startled eyes. Kravitz swallowed and dismissed his scythe and portal. “I—” he started.

“Jesus _Christ_ , Krav!” Taako blurted. “You—what the fuck are you doing?!”

Kravitz cleared his throat. “I was—you weren’t answering your phone. I got worried.”

Taako waved him off. “I said I was fine, didn’t I?” There were dried tear marks on his face. “You don’t—you don’t gotta portal into my fucking kitchen every time I’m sad, I’m _fine_.”

“No offense, but you didn’t seem very fine.” He resisted adding that Taako still didn’t seem fine. “I’m sorry I didn’t answer you when you needed me.”

“Ugh, don’t worry about it.” Taako wiped his face. "I’m a big boy. I can handle it.”

He took a step towards Taako, holding out a hand. “You shouldn’t have had to handle it by yourself, though. I’m your—” He faltered. “I’m your boyfriend. I should have been there to help you.”

Taako froze. His elf ears were pinned back slightly, like a cat’s. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

Oh god. It was too soon. He shouldn’t have said anything. He’d fucked it up and now Taako was going to kick him out of his apartment—his life—for it. “I—I’m sorry, though,” he stammered. “I should—that was—I didn’t—um—if you’re not—”

Taako launched himself at Kravitz, grabbing his lapels and burying his face in his chest. Kravitz stumbled, but brought his arms up to wrap around Taako’s shoulders. “I’m…I’m sorry,” he said again. He wasn’t sure what was going on, but Taako was crying, and he figured it was probably his fault.

“You’re a dumbass,” Taako said. He sniffled, and Kravitz rubbed his back. “You—fuck.” He took a shaky breath. “I’m not—used to this? I guess. From boyfriends.”

The word lifted Kravitz’s heart, and he squeezed Taako tighter. “That’s—I’m sorry to hear that. You deserve the world, Taako. You deserve someone who’ll be there for you, and I’m sorry it wasn’t me this time. I’m sorry you had to go through that alone.”

“No, I—” Taako pushed him away. Fresh tears streaked his face, and Kravitz reached up to wipe them away. “I talked to Lup. I’m okay now. I just…you know, had a, um. An episode. You know how it is.”

Kravitz shook his head. “I don’t, no. Do you want to talk about it?” Taako stiffened under his hands. “Or would you rather I left it alone?”

Taako blew out a loud sigh, moving away and running his hands through his hair. It had already been messy, but it was even worse now. “Jesus, you’re the whole deal. Look, maybe later, but—right now it’s dealt with. Don’t really wanna go over the whole thing again.” Kravitz nodded, looking at the floor. “But hey.” Taako stepped into his space and tipped his face up to give him a kiss. “It, uh. Really means a lot that you even wanna know.”

Kravitz kissed Taako again, slow and careful. “Of course I want to know,” he murmured, resting his forehead against Taako’s. “I’m your _boyfriend_.” He was allowed to say that now. It felt...good.

“Hmm.” Taako kissed him again, still slow but a lot less careful. Kravitz ran his fingers through Taako’s hair before pulling back. He was breathing a little harder, and he bit his lip at the look Taako gave him. He really had to go soon, but god, he didn’t want to. He wanted to stay with Taako, to make sure he was as alright as he claimed to be. And maybe some other things as well, but mostly the first thing.

“You have to go, huh,” Taako said. It wasn’t a question; he sounded resigned.

Kravitz nodded, but kissed Taako on the forehead before stepping back. “If I could stay, I promise I would.” A thought occurred to him. “I could come back, if you want? After the show tonight. It’s, um. It’ll be over around ten, I don’t know if you’ll be asleep by then—”

Taako was nodding. “Yes. Do that. I’ll still be up, don’t even—don’t you even worry about _that_.” He leaned on the doorframe leading from the kitchen to the front entrance as Kravitz headed out. “Break a leg.”

Kravitz paused, one hand on the door “Be safe,” he said. “I promise I’ll see you in a few hours.”

And then he headed into the hallway, because if he kept talking with Taako he was going to say something stupid or be late, and either way he was going to be in a lot of shit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get you a man who'll teleport into your apartment to comfort you every time you're sad
> 
> My brain: DON'T DO A HIT  
> My heart: you haven't fucked Taako up enough. you gotta fuck him up. fUCK HIM UP U COWARD, SQUARE UP
> 
> In other news, Taako will eventually talk about his issues. Like, tomorrow. Or something.


	18. Favour Returned

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz really does want to listen to Taako and help him with his issues.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So funny story: I've been doing a daily spread with my tarot cards since I bought them, and literally the first one I did was all bad stuff. They all meant stuff like "burden," "loss," etc. I just sat there staring at them for a bit like "wtf kind of Professor Trelawny bs is this shit" lol
> 
> Also I consumed an alcohol right before posting this so if there are any mistakes with the formatting you can blame that.

Taako was gone when Kravitz woke up. He’d expected it, honestly—Taako started work stupidly early in the day. He stretched and dragged himself out of bed, pulling on yesterday’s clothes. His suit had spent the night in a crumpled heap on Taako’s floor, and he’d have to wear a different suit for that night’s concert. Oh, well. It would work well enough until he got home.

Taking the scythe route home was easiest, and Kravitz was finally starting to get a little more used to it. Or at least he’d never broken down in hysterics since the first time he did it on purpose. It still left him feeling rattled and strange for at least an hour afterward, but it was progress.

After a bowl of cereal and a nice long shower, Kravitz was about to head back into his bedroom to get dressed when a plastic bag sitting on his coffee table caught his eye. It was the one he’d gotten from the Bureau of Books, with his new tarot book in it. He hadn’t done any readings yet, despite Aunt Paloma’s suggestion—he just hadn’t had time. He threw on some clothes and sat down on the couch, pulling the book from its bag and flipping through it until he found the section on how to perform a basic reading. It was a little more complicated than Aunt Paloma made it look, although he wouldn’t be surprised if that was just because she’d been doing it for decades and knew all the tricks. He settled on just doing a basic one card spread. He shouldn’t need to do anything more complicated than that, especially if it was going to be an everyday thing. Maybe once he got the hang of it he’d try out some three card readings, but for now, simple was best. The book even suggested pulling a card a day and recording about it in a journal, but he wasn't going to put this off just to go find a scrap paper or anything.

Aunt Paloma’s tarot deck was sitting on the coffee table, where he’d left it when he got home after seeing her off at the train station. Kravitz picked it up and turned it over in his hands, fanning the cards out to look at them. He’d seen this deck countless times growing up. Aunt Paloma had several tarot decks scattered around the house, on tables, tucked into bookshelves, held down with crystals. This one, though, was the one she’d bought when she first started reading tarot when she was young. (It was weird for Kravitz to think about Aunt Paloma as ever having been young. She seemed like the kind of person who came into the world fully formed at the age of seventy-five and only got older from there.) It was the deck she used the most, and it was always the one she used for Kravitz. He remembered being six, sitting at their sunlit kitchen table, watching her point at cards and explain what they meant. It was a calming memory, and he closed his eyes for a moment before starting to shuffle the deck.

The book said to ask his question while he was shuffling. He felt a little silly asking a question out loud alone in his apartment, and he’d seen Aunt Paloma do readings in silence before, so he figured just thinking the question would be fine. He stared at the cards as he shuffled them, focusing as hard as he could on the question _what do I need to know today?_ After they seemed fairly well shuffled, Kravitz held his breath and drew a card.

He didn’t look at it for a long moment, apprehension freezing his blood. But it wasn’t going to go away if he didn't look at it. Taking a deep breath, he turned the card over.

Kravitz was greeted with a grinning skull, and he flung the card across the room in a panic. With a sigh, he set the rest of the deck down and walked over to pick it up. The image on the card was a skeletal figure in a long black robe standing in a field of white roses, with a scythe in one hand and holding the other hand out towards the viewer, beckoning. There was a large black bird perched on the scythe. Written at the top was the Roman numeral XIII.

He flopped back down at the couch and stared at the ceiling. Of fucking _course_ he’d gotten the Death card first try. That was just how his life was, wasn’t it? Great, just great. What a goddamn pain. He sat up and reached for the book, flipping through to find the card’s interpretation. If he remembered correctly, the Death card wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, and it hardly ever meant actual, literal death. In his case, though, he wouldn't have been surprised.

According to the book, Death represented “an ending that makes transformation possible,” which he didn’t like at all. What was ending? What kind of transformation? Kravitz didn’t have his aunt’s gift for interpretation, so he was stuck with what the book told him. With a sigh, he stuck the card back into the deck and tossed the book onto the couch. It was no use stressing about it now. Hopefully, the temple would have more answers for him tomorrow.

~~~

_hey can we talk later_

Kravitz’s hands shook as he read the simple text Taako had just sent him. “We need to talk” were the four most terrifying words to hear from anyone you were close with, especially your boyfriend.

  
_Of course. Is everything alright?_   


_yeah its cool_  
 _just. figured i kinda owed an explanation for yesterday lol_

  
_You don’t have to talk about that if you don’t want to._   
_I wouldn’t want to open up old wounds._   


_nah like i said its cool_  
 _just come over after the concert_

  
_I’ll do that. See you tonight._   


_break a leg lol_

Kravitz debated sending a heart emoji or eight, but stuck his phone in his pocket before he could give in to the temptation to do something embarrassing. Alright. Okay. Taako wasn’t upset with him, or at least he didn’t sound that way over text. That was good. Kravitz had felt like he was walking through a world made of spun glass ever since his reading that morning. An ending that makes transformation possible. Something was going to end, and things would work out for the better but that first step, the ending, was the scary part. Some people, he knew, would have dismissed it as a self-fulfilling prophecy—that because Kravitz was _looking_ for something to end, it would happen. But Kravitz had grown up with a woman who went into predictive trances. He saw visions of people as they were in their past lives. He could summon a scythe from the ether, and he’d met psychic demons who had tried to steal his powers. He knew better than to dismiss anything, at this point. There would be an ending, and he was terrified that it would be with Taako.

“Kravitz!”

He turned to see the stage manager, a short, squat man with a cigar perpetually hanging out of his mouth, hurrying towards him. “You can’t smoke that in here,” Kravitz said as Boyland reached him.

Boyland scowled up at him. “It’s not lit. Look, we’ve got a problem.”

Kravitz’s heart leapt into his throat. No. No no no. Not something with the orchestra, please no. “What’s wrong?” he asked. His voice was steadier than he felt, and he forced himself to breath regularly. An ending that makes transformation possible. Things would be fine.

“It’s your first violinist. What’s-his-face.”

“Jeremy?” Kravitz frowned. “What about him?”

“That guy, yeah. He wants to quit.”

Kravitz blinked. “He…what? Now? We go on in ten minutes—”

“I don’t know.” Boyland shook his head. “He was on the phone arguing with someone, said something about Pigsbottom or something. You’d better talk to him. If he walks out now, we’re up shit creek.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “Last I saw, he was by the makeup room.”

“Thanks, Boyland.” Kravitz raced for the makeup room, silently praying Jeremy would listen to reason. He was a damn good violinist, but he could be a bit of a drama llama when he was in a bad mood. Hopefully, this was just Jeremy being Jeremy, and he could talk him down. If not, well, maybe he could at least talk him into staying until they had a replacement violinist. There had to be something they could do.

Jeremy was pacing in front of the makeup room door, phone to his ear. “No, sis, listen,” he was saying. “I know it’s a big—yeah I _know_ dad’s gonna hate it. When has he ever liked anything I’ve ever done, though? I mean it’s not set in—” He looked up and noticed Kravitz. “Shit, I have to go. I’ll call you later, just think about it, okay?” He hung up and turned to face Kravitz. “So, I guess you heard, huh?”

“Part of it.” Kravitz stuck his hands in his pockets. “We don’t have time for a big discussion at the moment, but what I need to know from you right now is very simple. Are you walking out on us tonight?”

“What? No!” Jeremy’s face scrunched up. “I’m offended you’d even think that! I just…I’m thinking about a career change. I never wanted to be in an orchestra.”

Kravitz raised his eyebrows. “Then why did you become a violinist?”

“Because you try getting your parents to support you through music school with a guitar.” He shrugged. “They didn’t want me going through music school at all, let alone to ‘join a shitty band that’d break up in three months and leave me broke for the rest of my life.’ Look. I’m not leaving tonight, I’m just—you know.”

Kravitz blinked, and Jeremy was gone, replaced with a strange blue lizard version of himself. He jerked back, biting the inside of his cheek to keep from screaming. It had been a few days since this had happened to him. After all the weird bullshit that he’d been dealing with recently, he’d almost forgotten what his original abilities were. Jeremy was frowning, confused, and Kravitz straightened himself and cleared his throat. “Yes, well. If you want a career change, far be it from me to stop you.” This was a bizarre conversation to be having with a fucking _lizard_. But hey, it was a step up from the last lizard he’d met, where he’d just stared in terror until she went away. “How about this. We don’t have a concert tomorrow, so let’s meet up in the morning and talk over our options. Sound good?”

Jeremy turned back into a human, and Kravitz breathed a sigh of relief. “Hell yeah. You’re not mad?”

“Five minutes to curtain!” Boyland shouted.

“Of course not,” Kravitz said, starting to head for backstage. Jeremy followed him, grabbing his violin as they passed it. “We’ll be sad to lose you, of course, but you have to pursue what’s right for you.”

An ending that makes transformation possible. Kravitz could live with that kind of self-fulfilling prophecy.

~~~

Taako had dark circles under his eyes when he opened the door for Kravitz. “Hey,” he said.

“You look exhausted,” Kravitz said, walking into the apartment. “Are you sure you want to talk about this right now? We can wait until you’ve gotten some rest, if you want.”

“Nah.” Taako yawned, stretching his arms over his head. “Let’s rip that band-aid right off, yeah? C'mon, I don't wanna have this conversation standing up."

Kravitz followed him to his bedroom, sitting on the edge of the bed as Taako crawled under the covers. “Are you _sure_?”

“Mmhm.” Taako sat with his back against the headboard, knees drawn to his chest. “So. Uh, I don’t really know where to start.” He scratched his ear. “I guess yesterday was just, like, a real shitty day? Like a lot of shitty things piled on top of more shit. And like, none of them were big things? But you know that feeling where you’re already in kind of a bad mood and every little thing sets you off?” Kravitz nodded. He’d had days like that, for sure. “It was like that. Except worse. The cafe was busy as hell, so Davenport was running around doing sixty different things at once, which left me to do all the prep work by myself, which is a lot. Like I’ve gotta bake and decorate all the shit, and then do all the sandwich orders and stuff on top of that? Hell no. Normally Lup’ll give me a hand with that, but she was stuck on drinks, so she was out. So I was kinda stressed. And, um, not gonna lie, when we talked on my break—”

“I’m sorry,” Kravitz said. He knew exactly what Taako was going to say and he knew what he’d done wrong. “I didn’t mean to make it sound like I was embarrassed to go on a date with you, Taako. I’m—I care about you; I could never be embarrassed about dating you.”

Taako smiled and patted his face. “I mean, I knew that. But like, knowing something and _knowing something_ are two different things, you know? And it was just another thing for my fucking dumpster fire brain to grab onto.” His smile wavered before disappearing completely, and he leaned back against the headboard, hands over his eyes. “And then my fucking _ex_ showed up.”

Kravitz blinked. “That’s…rarely good.”

“No, see, I’ve got exes, and then I’ve got _my fucking ex_.” Taako looked out at him from behind his hands. “We didn’t date, not really, it was a one night thing, like six years ago now? I forget. Anyway, he keeps turning up like a bad penny and he doesn’t try to get back with me or anything if he sees Lup’s there ’cause he knows she’ll kick his teeth in but he still _suuuuucks _to have to be around.”__

__“That’s why you don’t do one night stands anymore,” Kravitz said. At least that finally made sense._ _

__Taako nodded. “Fuck Sazed, seriously. What a tool. He knows he—anyway, my shift was over anyway so I went home. I was gonna make myself food, but after seeing him I just—I couldn’t even go _into_ my kitchen, like how fucked is that? And that’s around when I tried to contact you. Except you didn’t answer, so I called Lup, and she and Barry helped me out.”_ _

__Kravitz leaned forward, moving one of Taako’s hands so he could kiss his forehead. “I’m sorry.”_ _

__“You’ve got nothing to apologise for, bubelah.” Taako guided Kravitz down for a real kiss. “Thanks for listening. And, you know.” He cleared his throat. “Giving a shit.”_ _

__“Of course I give a shit.” Taako had called him _bubelah_. Kravitz’s heart lifted. “After all, I am your _boyfriend_.”_ _

__Taako laughed, interrupting himself in the middle with a yawn. “Okay, now Taako’s sleepy. Move; I’m a sleepy boyfriend and I’m going to sleep.” He pushed at Kravitz without any real force, but Kravitz laughed and got up anyway. “No, don’t _leave_ ,” Taako said, snuggling down under the covers. “I’m not kicking you out. Come to bed.”_ _

__Kravitz shook his head, but went around to the other side of the bed, stripping off his suit and laying it over the back of Taako’s vanity chair on the way. “I should just start keeping pajamas here,” he joked._ _

__Taako sat bolt upright. “Fuck, yeah, you should. Shit, I haven’t gotten to steal any of your clothes yet; what kind of shitty boyfriend am I, huh?”_ _

__“You’re not a shitty boyfriend, Taako.” Kravitz turned off the light and climbed into bed in just his boxers. He wasn’t about to go digging through Taako’s room looking for a pair of pajama pants._ _

__“Nah, I’m great.” Taako yawned and curled into Kravitz’s side. “You’re pretty great, too,” he mumbled, and Kravitz kissed his forehead as Taako drifted off._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll admit I'm not a fan of the "Sazed is Taako's abusive ex" trope I see in a lot of fics? I prefer "Taako and Sazed hooked up once and it was just a one-night thing for Taako but Sazed got attached and wouldn't let go to the point where it became unhealthy." That's just a personal preference, also I don't like writing or reading about abusive relationships, even just as a character's backstory.
> 
> That said, fuck Sazed.


	19. The Temple, Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Pan-Religious Temple isn't exactly what Kravitz expected. If it brings him the answers he's looking for, though, he's willing to deal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now with chapter titles!!
> 
> Also in case you missed it, I posted another side story yesterday. This time it's about the world's greatest detective and your very good friend, Angus McDonald. It's #4 in the Echoes series or in [this here link](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15683139).
> 
> Also also did you guys know I don't actually know what I'm doing

_hey im off in an hour, whats our bus situation look like?_

Kravitz stared at Taako’s text. He was sitting on his couch in black jeans and a dark blue dress shirt, a plate that used to hold a sandwich sitting next to him on the couch. Fuck. He’d forgotten to look at the bus schedule to the temple. In his defense, it had been a crazy few days, and he kept telling himself he’d do it when he had the chance. Unfortunately, every time he did have the chance, he forgot about it until he was halfway through conducting a symphony or talking to Jeremy about staying on until they filled his spot in the orchestra. Typical.

He brought up the Neverwinter Transit website on his phone, looking for the route that would get them to the Pan-Religious Temple. It didn’t look like there was a stop directly in front of it, but there was one on the nearby street corner. According to the schedule, there was only one bus that would get them there, and it left from the bus terminal downtown every half hour. If he met Taako at the Starblaster and they walked to the terminal from there, they could catch the one-thirty without much trouble. He texted that to Taako, then put his plate in the sink and started getting ready to leave. He’d already been out once today—to talk to Jeremy—so there wasn't much left to do.

A thought occurred to him as he was getting ready, and he grabbed a small plastic bag. Heading to the bedroom, he scooped all the offerings that Pitch and Obsidian had brought him. Maybe the people at the temple would have something to tell him about their significance. Or maybe he was reading too much into it and the ravens were just very stupid birds who thought he was their mother. Either way, it didn’t hurt to try.

On his way to the door, Aunt Paloma’s tarot deck caught his eye. In his rush to get up and meet Jeremy at the concert hall, he hadn’t had time to do a reading. He checked the clock on his microwave. He had time. He picked up the deck and gave it a quick shuffle, drawing a card at random and flipping it over. The Queen of Cups greeted him, and he flipped through his tarot book to find the meaning. According to the book, she represented someone who wanted to nurture and develop others, encouraging them to follow their hearts. An older woman stared out of the card, a gentle smile on her lips and a glimmer in her eye that reminded him of his aunt. It was definitely a step up from yesterday’s card. Kravitz shuffled the card back into the deck and put it away. It was time to get going.

Obsidian cawed at him as he started down the street, and he ignored him. If he wanted to be a drama queen every time Kravitz left the house, that was _his_ problem.

The Starblaster was oddly quiet when he arrived. Granted, Kravitz had never been there at quarter to one in the afternoon, but he would have thought the lunch rush would have been in full swing. There were only three other customers. Lup was cleaning tables, but when Kravitz came in she ran behind the cash and acted like she’d been there the whole time. “Hey,” she said when he approached. “Here to pick up Taako?”

Kravitz smiled. “Yes, but I know I’m a little early.” He looked around. “Quiet day today?”

“Ugh, it’s so _nice_ ,” Lup said, leaning on one of the display cases. “Taako finally convinced Dad’nport to hire on a friend of his, so once she gets here we should all get the right amount of time off again, but those few days were heeeeellll.” She eyed him over. “By the way, do you actually want anything?”

“Oh, right.” Embarrassed, Kravitz dug in his pocket for his change. “Medium dark roast, please.”

Kravitz wandered the Bureau while he waited for Taako. He didn’t need anything—he’d only just gotten around to cracking open _Commitment_ —but it was still nice to browse. There was a new biography of Artemis Sterling, the longest-running mayor of Neverwinter, but other than that he didn’t find much.

Barry was in the graphic novel section, taking books off the shelf and putting them back in different, presumably more correct places. He looked up when Kravitz approached. “Oh hey,” he said. He looked like a regular human man aside from the long red robe that hung off his shoulders. At least he hadn’t turned into a litch. “You’re, uh, Kravitz, right? I’m Barry.”

Kravitz shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, officially.” Barry was strange, and not just because he was an awkward person. Kravitz had seen him in so many different forms—normal human, robed human, armored human, ghost-demon. It was hard to get a bead on who Barry was, exactly. “You’re dating Lup, right?”

To his surprise, Barry's entire face went bright red immediately. “Yeah, that's me! Lup’s boyfriend. And you’re dating Taako, huh? Does that make us in-laws?”

Kravitz snorted. “I—I don’t think it works like that.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Barry went back to sorting his books. “By the way, how’d you like those comics you got?”

“Oh.” Kravitz cringed. “I haven’t read them yet.”

Barry nodded. He didn’t seem surprised. “Well, if you like them once you get to them, there’s a new one.” He pointed to a book facing outward on the shelf. The word _Dust_ was stylized on the cover to look like it was blowing away in the wind. Kravitz vaguely remembered seeing signs for it around the Bureau last week. “It’s all supernatural wild west stuff. It’s pretty cool.”

Arms slid around Kravitz’s waist from behind. “What’d I say about nerd germs, Bluejeans?”

Kravitz relaxed into Taako’s hold as Barry scowled. “And what’d I say about your sister kicking your ass?”

“Touché, my man.” He released Kravitz, only to grab his hand and tug him towards the door. “Let’s get going, babe.”

“Bye, Barry,” Kravitz said, allowing Taako to lead him away.

Barry waved after them. “You kids have fun, now.”

Taako flipped him off over his shoulder. “Now that’s not very nice,” Kravitz said, holding the door open for Taako. “He was just saying goodbye.”

“I’m older than Barold and he knows it,” Taako said haughtily. “C’mon, we’re gonna miss our bus.”

~~~

“Lup said you were getting a new employee,” Kravitz said when they’d found seats near the back of the bus.

Taako flopped back in his seat. “Yeah, my friend Ren. I told her we were looking for help in the kitchen and she said she could be here in three weeks.”

Kravitz raised his eyebrows. “That fast? You must be close.”

“Hell yeah, Ren’s great.” Taako stretched his arms out in front of him. “She’s like, kinda excitable? But also a take-charge kinda lady.” He sat up straight. “Oh yeah, you’re from Refuge, right? Do you know the Davy Lamp?”

“Of course. It’s my aunt’s favourite restaurant.”

Taako nodded. “Yeah, Ren works there. I mean, she’s putting in her two weeks, but yeah.” He flopped back again, looking up at Kravitz. “You’d probably like her.”

Kravitz smiled. “I suppose we’ll find out when I meet her, hm?”

Taako lifted Kravitz’s arm and put it around his shoulders. “Yup.” He laughed as Kravitz felt his face flush. “Anyway, what’re we doing here? With the temple and stuff. I mean, I’m definitely not there to worship, that’s not what Taako’s about. Are you?”

“I…” Kravitz paused. “I don’t know. I’m hoping the people who run the place can give me some answers, or at least point me in the right direction.” According to the Pan-Religious Temple’s website, it was a place for ‘any and all religions to have a safe space to perform their rites of worship.’ Theoretically, that meant the staff would know at least a little about ‘any and all religions’ if that was how they advertised it. It was worth a shot, anyway.

“Mm.” Taako leaned into his side. “Hey, after this, what do you want to do? There’s some cool shops around here we can check out. One of them sells the best deep-fried ice cream on a stick you’ve ever had in your life.”

An old lady further up the bus was glaring at them, and Kravitz squeezed Taako closer out of both spite and a desire to protect him from her nasty attitude. “That sounds wonderful, love.”

Taako sat up straight, panic in his eyes. “Uh—you—yeah, okay. Fried ice cream. Cool.” Kravitz frowned, wondering what had suddenly put Taako in such a state, but before he could ask Taako was standing up and pulling the cord to stop the bus. “This is us, right?”

~~~

The Pan-Religious Temple wasn’t as big as Kravitz had expected, and it looked more like a regular house that someone lived in than a house of worship. After Wonderland, though, Kravitz knew better than to judge by first glance. The Temple was one and a half storeys high, built of warm red brick. A wooden porch with a garden next to it sat out front, shaded by a large maple tree.

Taako stared as they approached. “This place looks like it belongs to that weird aunt with a billion cats that you have to spend every other weekend visiting.”

Kravitz glanced down at him, amused. “That’s an oddly specific description.”

“Am I wrong, though?” Taako gestured to the building with both hands. “If it wasn’t for the sign out front, I’d think we were in the wrong place.”

Kravitz had to admit, it really did look like a normal house. It had a porch swing, for crying out loud.

Someone was kneeling in the garden. He had his back to them, so it took Kravitz a moment, but he registered who it was at the same time as Taako frowned and said “Merle?”

Merle looked over his shoulder at them and laughed, standing up. “Well, lookie-loo! Fancy meeting you two all the way out here.”

“We didn’t mean to interrupt,” Kravitz said apologetically. “If you were in the middle of a prayer—”

Merle waved him off with his trowel. “Nah, that was earlier. Merle the religion guy is gone for the day; now it’s Merle the community volunteer’s turn.” He gestured to the patch of dirt he was standing in. “I come out here and keep the garden looking nice a couple times a week. Y’know, keep Pan happy and all that. Honestly, I figure this is a better form of worship for a nature god than all that prayer hooey anyway.” His prosthetic arm started drumming its fingers against his leg, and he scowled at it. “It keeps doing that,” he muttered.

Kravitz cleared his throat. “Well, we should—”

“Oh yeah, yeah.” Merle scratched his nose. “Have fun, kids. Don’t get in too much trouble.”

Taako tugged Kravitz's hand. “Come on, I’ve _gotta_ see what the inside of this place looks like.”

Kravitz hesitated at the door. It was just…a door. A normal screened-in porch door with a normal front door behind it, painted in bright rainbow colours. “There—I don’t know, Taako, do we just walk in? What if there’s a service going on and we interrupt it?”

“Don’t go getting’ cold feet now, homie.” Taako opened the door and pulled Kravitz inside. “You’re the one who wanted to come here.”

The inside looked a little more like what Kravitz had expected. The front entryway was lined with bulletin boards and tables heaped high with pamphlets, but directly in front of them was a large archway. Through it, he could see a room filled with rows of benches leading to a raised platform.

“Hello!” a voice called out. Kravitz turned towards it and clutched Taako’s hand when he saw who it belonged to. A skeleton had just walked out of a door labelled ‘OFFICE.’ Its face was painted with intricate patterns of bright yellows and purples and greens, colours that were matched on the robe it wore. It stared straight at Kravitz, and he backed up a few steps until his back hit the door. “Are you alright, sir?” it asked.

“Krav?” Taako’s voice sounded far away, even though he was right in front of him. “Krav, babe, it’s okay, look at me.” He had both of Kravitz’s hands in his and squeezed them tightly. “Hey, breathe, okay? D’you want me to get Merle?”

Kravitz shook his head, trying to focus on controlling his breathing. “Taako,” he said quietly. “Is—he’s not actually a skeleton, is he?”

Taako looked over his shoulder. “No? I’m—I don’t know what _you’re_ seeing, but he’s a flesh boy to me.”

“Okay.” Kravitz squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to take long, slow breaths. Slowly, he felt his body relax. There wasn’t really a walking skeleton, Taako was here with him, Merle was just outside if he needed him. This was fine. Everything was going to be fine.

“Goodness.” When Kravitz opened his eyes and looked at him again, he miraculously had skin, and hair, and a beard, even. “Do you need to sit down? You don’t look well.” He gestured for them to follow him and led them further into the temple, into the room with the benches. “Please, have a seat. Do you need some water? I can—Redmond!” he shouted, turning back towards the archway. “Can you bring a glass of water in here?” He turned back to Kravitz and Taako. “My brother will be here shortly.”

“Thank you,” Kravitz said, still holding Taako’s hand. “I’m very sorry about all this.”

“No need to apologise, my good man! Happens to the best of us.” The man straightened his robe. “My name is Luca. My brother Redmond and I run this temple.” He tilted his head. “I don’t think I’ve seen you two here before.”

Taako stretched out his legs, but didn’t let go of Kravitz’s hand. “I’m Taako. You know, from TV? And this here’s Kravitz. He’s the one with all the questions; I’m just here for moral support.”

“And it’s much appreciated,” Kravitz said. Taako tossed his hair and grinned.

“Questions, huh?” Luca sat on the bench opposite them as another man appeared in the archway, holding a glass of water. He was taller than Luca, and his hair and beard were a little more unkempt, but other than that they were nearly identical. They even wore the same colourful robes. “Ah, Redmond.” Luca nodded towards Kravitz and Redmond handed him the water. “These are Taako and Kravitz. They had some questions for us, apparently.”

“Charmed,” Redmond said, sitting next to his brother. “What can we help you boys with today?”

Kravitz sipped at his water to stall for time. What did he say? Where did he start? “I’m looking for anything you can tell me about the Raven Queen.” There. Just jump in with both feet.

Luca and Redmond looked at each other for a moment, then back to Kravitz. ‘Now there’s one we don’t hear often,” Redmond said.

“Let me explain about our establishment here,” Luca said. “Here at the Pan-Religious Temple, we provide a space for anyone to practice their religious and spiritual beliefs. Whether that’s by holding services or using one of our private rooms is up to the individual.” He gestured around the room. Windows lined one wall, providing natural light. The opposite wall was lined with doors instead. “My brother and I are followers of Lady Istus, goddess of fate, but we recognise that she may not be the most well known goddess.”

“I’ve heard of her,” Taako said breezily.

Luca fixed him with a hard look. “I will give you five real dollars if you can tell me anything about Istus that I didn’t just tell you right now.”

Taako faltered. “Um.”

“In any case,” Redmond continued, smoothly picking up where his brother had been interrupted, “we built this temple so that we, and others like us, could have a place to worship and hold religious ceremonies. Unfortunately, we aren’t exactly what you might call experts on every religion ever.”

Kravitz slumped. “Oh.” Had this been for nothing? After Aunt Paloma’s prophecy told him to visit the temple, he’d thought for sure there’d be at least _something_ here. Her prophecies were never wrong.

“However,” Luca said, “that isn’t to say that we don’t know _anything_ about the Raven Queen. She and Lady Istus are good, good buds.”

“Lovers, according to some stories,” Redmond added.

“We have some base knowledge. We just don’t know a _lot_.” Luca folded his hands in his lap. “So. What would you like to know about Her Majesty?”

Kravitz sat up straighter and clutched Taako's hand. “I—I have so many questions. I don’t know where to start. She—the Raven Queen—what’s her relationship with ravens?”

Redmond steepled his fingers. “One of her titles is ‘mother of ravens’ for a reason. Some stories say she created them from the bones of the deceased, others say the first ravens were her own children.”

“In all of them, though, she has two raven familiars,” Luca said. “Brother and sister, they serve as her messengers to her reapers and hunters. Their names were—”

“Obsidian and Pitch,” Kravitz said numbly. Oh god.

Luca nodded. “Yes, that’s right. Look at you, doing your research. I don’t know how you learned that, since the only things online about the Raven Queen are some nerd game and a Mattel doll, but you’re quite correct. Obsidian is the brother, Pitch the sister.”  
Kravitz finally let go of Taako’s hand to sit forward and put his head in his hands. Obsidian and Pitch. The two very stupid ravens that had been following him around and giving him presents and looking out for his general well-being were the familiars of the Raven Queen. Taako’s hand landed gently on his back. Kravitz took a deep breath. He was so glad Taako was with him.

“Are you alright?” Redmond asked. “Have some more water.”

Kravitz shook his head and sat up. “I’m fine. Do you know if the Raven Queen regularly grants mortals psychic powers?”

The brothers stared at him like he’d grown a second head. That was a no, then. “I mean, it’s possible,” Redmond admitted. “I’ll admit, I don’t know how or why, but—”

“Never mind,” Kravitz interrupted. “It was a silly question. What about her reapers? Or bounty hunters? Whichever.”

Luca shrugged. “Same difference. They’re creatures of undeath charged with both guiding departed souls to the afterlife and punishing those who break the laws of life and death—necromancers and the like. Seriously, are you alright? You’ve gone all pale again.”

Kravitz's hands were shaking. “Undeath?”

“Not really alive, not really dead. You know.” Redmond wiggled his fingers. “Spooky.”

“Not to be intrusive, but why all the questions?” Luca asked. “Did you want to make an offering to her or something?”

Kravitz stared. “Can—can you _do_ that?” If he made an offering to the Raven Queen—what would happen? If she was the source of his powers, would she answer him? Or would nothing really happen?

Redmond shrugged. “Probably. Luca and I make offerings to Istus to ask her for guidance every day. That’s what most of our visitors come here to do, just with different gods. I don’t know how you’d make an offering to the Raven Queen, but we could help you make one to Istus if you wanted.”

“Couldn’t hurt,” Luca added. “Mother Istus provides guidance in return for her offerings. You could ask her to guide you towards the answers you’re looking for.”

Kravitz looked at Taako, who shrugged. “If you wanna, go for it, my fella,” he said. “Taako’s good out here, though.”

He steeled himself and nodded. “One more question, before that. Do you—is there anything about the Raven Queen and the seven birds?”

Redmond folded his arms. “No, the seven birds are Istus’s thing. Where’d you hear about them in connection with the Raven Queen?”

Kravitz blinked. He’d just assumed they were connected to the Raven Queen because—well—birds. “I—may have misunderstood something my aunt told me once. What are they, exactly? She’s mentioned them twice now and I don’t understand.”

“There was an old legend that mentions seven birds,” Luca said. “They were said to have appeared in a time of crisis to save the world. We don’t know who they are or what they did, only what they were called in the legend.”

“The Twins, the Lover, the Protector,” Redmond said, counting each off on his fingers as he listed them. “The Lonely Journal-Keeper, the Peacemaker, and the Wordless One. Other than that, there’s nothing about them.”

Kravitz wished he’d brought something to write all this down in. Although the seven birds thing didn’t seem all that relevant, now that he had some context. But then why had both of Aunt Paloma’s prophecies not only mentioned them, but told him to trust them? “I’d like to do an offering now, please.”

“Sure.” As Luca stood, his face shifted back to a skull for a moment before changing back. Redmond’s face stayed the same. “I’ll go get you a prayer card. Redmond will show you to a room.”

Taako gave him a thumbs up as Kravitz followed Redmond towards the wall of doors. “I’ll be chillin’ here when you’re done! Have fun!”

He was glad Taako was keeping his cool, because Kravitz was one retrocognitive incident away from losing his. Redmond opened the first door on the left and ushered Kravitz inside. It wasn’t a very large room, just big enough that two people could move around properly. There was a small wooden altar at one end with four tall candles and a carved wooden bowl sitting on it. Redmond gestured to it. “It’s very simple. Istus doesn’t stand on ceremony much. Light the candles and place your offering in the bowl, then kneel on this mat here—” He indicated a small white mat about five feet from the altar. “And say your prayer. If Istus accepts your offering, she’ll communicate with you through the candles, extinguishing one for a negative answer and lighting one for a positive answer.” Kravitz dug out his wallet, but Redmond stopped him with a hand on his arm. “Oh, no, not money,” he said. “What use does a god have for that? Istus accepts offerings of things like yarn, needles, thread, fabric—anything to do with fiber craft.”

Kravitz hesitated, then reached into his bag and pulled out the needle and thread that Obsidian and Pitch had given him the first time they brought him something. “Will this work?”

Redmond inspected it, then nodded. “The colour isn’t one generally associated with Lady Istus, but it’ll work just fine.”

Luca appeared in the doorway and handed Kravitz a light yellow index card. “There you are. Just read the prayer on here before asking Mother Istus for guidance in whatever area you need it. The room’s yours for as long as you’d like it. Just make sure to extinguish the candles before you leave.”

Kravitz clutched the paper in one hand and the thread in the other. “Thank you.”

“No problem,” Redmond said, heading for the door. Luca nodded at him once and shut the door behind them, and then Kravitz was alone.

There were matches on the altar behind one of the candles. Kravitz lit the candles and placed the thread in the wooden bowl before taking up his position on the mat. He wasn’t sure if he needed to clasp his hands or not, so he just left one in his lap, the other holding the index card so he could read it. The words looked like they’d been printed using a typewriter. “Lady of Fate,” he read aloud. His voice rang loud in his ears, and he swallowed and lowered his voice. “Mother Istus, author of the story of life and the nurturer of passing time, I beseech these things in your name.”

All the lights in the room went out—the overhead electric lights flickered once before dying, and the candles just extinguished themselves. Before Kravitz could get to his feet and fumble his way to the door, the candles relit themselves, one by one. The overhead light slowly faded back in, like someone was playing with a dimmer switch.

When Kravitz’s eyes adjusted to being able to see again, he wasn’t alone in the room. A woman with long white hair had appeared in front of the altar, sitting in a rocking chair, a pair of knitting needles in her hands. She smiled serenely at him as his jaw hit the floor.

“Hello, Kravitz,” said Istus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No seriously this isn't a joke or self-deprecation I legitimately have no idea what I'm doing
> 
> ~~That said I absolutely have the next chapter written already I'm just trying to pace these updates slightly better while also working on my fic for The Adventure Bang and my DBZ fic this is what I do when I have time off~~


	20. The Temple, Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This isn't the goddess Kravitz was looking for.
> 
> But also, she's still a _goddess_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to wait longer to post this but with it being the TAZ-iversary today/yesterday and with me having nothing else prepared for it, y'all get this. Um. Enjoy?
> 
> (Despite my trepidation there's a paragraph in here that I'm actually legitimately proud of ngl)

Kravitz scrambled back on his hands until he was pressed against the door. This was a prank. It had to be. Those two brothers had set things up so this woman could come in and pretend to be a goddess and freak him out so that—

So that—

To what end?

“No, no, it’s alright, shhh.” Her hands never stopped moving as she knitted the longest, most colourful scarf Kravitz had ever seen. She looked at him with a gentle, caring smile. It didn’t help, but the thought was there. “Kravitz, it’s alright.”

“What—” He swallowed and tried again. “What’s going on? Who are you?”

Her smile turned wry. “You know better than to ask questions you already have the answers to.”

“Istus,” he breathed.

She laughed, musical and lovely. “I have had many names over the centuries. But Istus is the one I like best.”

Kravitz clutched his head. “This isn’t—this can’t be real. I’m hallucinating, or—or having another retrocog incident, or—something. You can’t—”

“Do you presume to tell a goddess what she can or cannot do?” Istus asked. She sounded amused. “I’m very real, Kravitz. As real as you or Taako—more so, even.”

He was shaking. There was a literal _goddess_ in front of him. What was he supposed to do? How was he supposed to react?

Kravitz pulled himself to his feet and took a steadying breath. “I don’t understand,” he said. “Why are you here?”

Istus continued her knitting, looking thoughtfully into the middle distance. “Because you called me. You asked for guidance, and I am here to deliver.”

“But—they said—the candles,” Kravitz stammered. “Forgive me, my knowledge of deities is shaky at best, but I wouldn’t have thought a goddess would appear in person for just—some random person.”

She hummed in agreement. “That may be. But the fact remains that you’re _not_ just some random person.”

“I’m not?” Kravitz asked weakly.

“Of course not. I’ll be honest, not everyone would be able to perceive me right now. If Luca or Redmond or even Taako or Magnus or Merle were here with you, they might feel my presence if I did this.” She waved a hand and one of the candles extinguished itself, relighting itself again a moment later. “But they wouldn’t see me, or hear my words. Not here, anyway.”

He blinked. “Why Magnus and Merle?” Taako he understood, sort of—he was in the other room, after all. But what did the other two have to do with anything? If anything, though, it helped seal the deal that Istus was who she said she was. None of them had so much as mentioned Magnus while they were there.

“No reason.” Istus shrugged. “That isn’t the point. You’re something special, Kravitz.”

“Because of my powers,” he said numbly.

“That’s certainly part of it. You come from a very important background, did you know that? Your mother—well, I can’t say too much about that.” She sighed. “But suffice it to say that she loves you very much—so much so that she wanted to be sure you had a chance at a normal, happy life. If you’d stayed with her, who could say how things would have turned out?” Istus looked at the long scarf she was knitting. “Well, I could, I suppose. You might have been happy, but it would have been hollow. You never would have met the people you know now—never would have formed those connections, those bonds. Your mother didn’t want that for you.”

“Is…” Kravitz’s fingernails dug into the palms of his hands. “Is my mother still alive? Is she out there somewhere?”

Istus tilted her head, looking at her scarf. “There’s still a chance you can meet her, if that’s really what you want. You have to understand something about fate, Kravitz. Despite what people think, it isn’t written in stone.” She held up the scarf. It shimmered in a million colours, shifting almost imperceptibly the longer he looked at it. “It’s more like a scarf, or a tapestry, or a quilt.” She pulled another strand of yarn from a bag at her feet and knitted it into her scarf. “It can be changed by the smallest thing. Fate is malleable. Changeable. It doesn’t always do what’s expected of it. You can come back and look at it in a day and it might be different, or look at it in sixty years and it’s exactly the same as it was the first time you checked.” She set her knitting in her lap and took one of Kravitz’s hands in hers. “You have to make that happen, though, Kravitz. I may be ‘the author of the story of life,’ but mortals are the editors. You can change everything with the smallest decision—like going to a new coffee shop on a whim.” Her eyes glittered. “If you want to meet your mother, to find the truth of your story, you have to be the one to make that happen. And you’ve done a wonderful job so far!” She picked her scarf up again and continued where she’d left off. “You got this far. I’m proud of you, and so is the Raven Queen, even if she can’t be here to say so herself.”

Something clutched at Kravitz’s heart. “The—she—if she’s so proud of me, why won’t she come tell me that herself? Why all the secrecy and—I just want to understand.”

She rolled her eyes, which was a very human reaction for a goddess. “My wife loves her dramatics. But also, you called for guidance from _me_ , not her. So here I am.”

Damn, she had him there. “Is there anything you can tell me?” he asked. “My aunt said she’s bound by a promise so she couldn’t tell me much. Please, your, um. Your Ladyship.”

Istus laughed. “How formal! Just Istus will do. Yes, there are some things I can tell you. But you have to ask the right questions.” She shook her head when he opened his mouth. “No, sorry, that’s just the way it is. Even the gods have rules we have to abide by.”  
He leaned back against the door and rubbed his eyes under his glasses. This was…it was a lot. He was talking to a goddess, asking questions about another goddess. He was starting to get sick of asking all the questions. He wanted some goddamn answers. “Alright,” he said. “First and foremost: why are my powers changing? It was just retrocognition for years. Why suddenly the dreams, and the scythe, and the—all of it?”

Istus looked thoughtful. “Have you heard of the red strings of fate? That everyone has invisible ties to the person they’ll spend the rest of their life with?” Kravitz nodded. “It’s not completely inaccurate. Mostly that theory only talks about romantic ties, but bonds can be formed between anyone, not just lovers. And some bonds are strong enough to persist forever. Across time, lives—worlds and planes, even. But that’s a whole other thing that we won’t get into today. Your abilities are tied to your bonds. The more people you meet that you had a strong connection with in a previous life, the more your powers will grow. That’s where your retrocognitive abilities first manifested—in your ability to feel your past self’s bonds. It didn’t start with sight. The dreams and constant sight are just the next steps in their natural progression.”

“Oh,” he said weakly. So it was because of the people he met who had a connection to him. Meeting Taako must have kickstarted them something fierce.

“As to the other thing—the scythe,” Istus continued, “you were in trouble. Deeper trouble than you’d ever been in your life.” She smiled serenely. “And the Queen looks out for her own.”

Kravitz’s jaw dropped. “You—are you saying it was— _divine intervention_?!”

“More or less.”

“Well which is it?” he asked. “More or less?”

She hid her laugh behind a hand. “I’d go with more on that one.” The smile dropped off her face completely for the first time. “Oh, Kravitz.”

The room was blurry and his face was wet. He stuck his glasses on top of his head and wiped at his face with his sleeve. This was stupid and embarrassing. Crying in front of a _goddess_. Over what? She handed him a handkerchief and he didn’t question where she’d gotten it. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly.

“No, no, don’t apologise. It’s alright. This must be so overwhelming for you.” She was smiling sympathetically when he could see again. “She never wanted this for you, you know. That’s why you’re here the way you are now. If we could have seen a way out for you that didn’t involve the scythe, you never would have gotten it.”

Were they talking about his mother or the Raven Queen? He didn’t know anymore. “I don’t—the Queen gave me a scythe to—protect myself?”

“Raven is a little protective of her flock.” Istus winked. “She doesn’t involve herself often, but she always makes sure they have the tools for the job.”

“What do you mean, flock?” he asked. He had a feeling he knew the answer, but he wanted to hear her say it. For her to confirm it.

Istus didn’t answer for a long moment, looking at the scarf she was knitting. “Your past life…what do you know about it?”

“Nothing.” Kravitz shook his head. “I—I think I—there was a skeleton?”

She nodded absently. “That tracks. I don’t really think it's my place to say—”

“Was I one of her bounty hunters?” Kravitz stood straight and looked Istus in the eyes. “I was, wasn’t I.”

Istus was smiling sadly. “The Raven Queen’s finest. You did her proud.”

“That’s where the scythe is from.” Pieces were finally starting to fall into place, but he was still missing a few parts. “I was—I was a Grim Reaper.” He took a shaky breath. “I need to contact the Raven Queen.”

“Kravitz, look at me.” Istus put a hand on his cheek. “Who you were isn’t as important as who you are now. Promise me you’ll remember that.”

He shook his head. “But—I have to know. I have to understand who I was so I can understand who I am.”

Istus gave him a serious look. “I can tell you how to ask the Raven Queen for guidance, but you have to promise me this. No matter what happens now, what you learn, who you were—that was the past. You need to be the Kravitz of _this_ world. Understanding your past is important, it’s true. Only once we know what we were and what we are can we determine what we will become. But you can’t move forward if you’re always looking back.” She smiled. “And the people here love _you_ , not your past self. Taako and Paloma and Avi and everyone else...they’re here for _you_ , Kravitz. Promise me you won’t get so hung up on who you were that you forget who you are.”

Her hand was warm on his face. “I promise.”

“Good.” She sat back in her chair. “I’m going to hold you to that. Deities don’t take promises lightly, you know.” She knitted a new thread into her scarf and gestured to the bag he’d set aside when he started his prayer. “You have most of what you need already. I’ve added a few extras that should lead you in the right direction to the rest.” Istus laid her knitting in her lap and looked him in the eyes. “The rest is up to you, now, but remember you aren’t alone. The seven birds will support you if you ask them.” She winked. “One in particular is rather fond of you.”

Kravitz frowned. “The—wait, who?” She nodded towards the door with another wink.

He felt like a cannonball hit him in the chest. _The Twins_. “Taako?”

“Good luck, Kravitz,” she said. She was starting to fade. “You are so loved. Never forget that.”

“Wait—” he started, but he blinked, and the room faded to darkness, and when the lights came back on he was alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got about a chapter and a half written after this? I'm going to actually wait a while before posting more this time to give myself time to write myself some more buffers. Also to work on my Adventure Bang fic because I really need to finish that (50k and still going strong, I'm going to die, tell my mother I love her)


	21. Unpacking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz starts processing everything he's just learned. Unsurprisingly, he doesn't get very far.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a short one this time, but eh. Got a couple side stories coming up so here, have the only main story chapter I have written hahahahaha school starts again in a week and a half and I'm dying

“That was fast,” Taako said when Kravitz came out of the room, clutching his bag. “You were only in there for, like, a minute and a half. You good?”

Kravitz willed himself to keep from shaking. “I—it felt longer than that.”

Luca turned to him from where he was dusting the windowsills. Redmond was nowhere to be seen. “Did you find what you were looking for?”

He swallowed his automatic response of ‘and then some.’ “Yes, I—yes.” He grabbed Taako’s hand. “We should go.”

Taako let himself be pulled to his feet, but he was frowning in confusion at Kravitz. “Okay? You sure everything’s good, babe?”

“It’s fine.” Kravitz tried to smile reassuringly. He’d just talked with a _goddess_ who told him he used to be a _Grim fucking Reaper_ and that his boyfriend was the reincarnation of one of the people who had supposedly saved the world at some point. His world was shaking to dust around him. But he had to pretend to be fine for at least long enough to get home and fall apart.

Taako didn’t look convinced. “Cool. Let’s go eat ice cream until we’re sick.”

~~~

“No, I’m cooking you dinner. Fuck you.”

Kravitz shook his head. “You don’t—”

“I told you! I’m doing it!” Taako pushed past Kravitz into his apartment. “Eat shit! I’m making you a _fucking_ meal!” Kravitz followed, somewhat bewilderedly. “You go have a shower or nap or whatever. Taako’s got it covered.”

Kravitz caught his arm as he headed for the kitchen. “At least let me help.”

“No fuckin’ way.” Taako yanked his arm out of Kravitz’s grip and crossed them in front of himself. “You looked like _shit_ coming out of that temple, and if you won’t talk about it you’re gonna just straight-up recover from it. This whole ‘giving a shit’ thing goes both ways, homie. Go fucking relax before I _make_ you.” When Kravitz hesitated, he added “Also, if I need your help I’ll ask for it.” He waved him towards the bathroom. “You’d better come out of there dripping wet with a towel as low down your hips as it can get or I _swear to Christ_ —”

“Okay, alright, I’m going.” Kravitz held up his hands in defeat and backed towards the bathroom. “This is me, going for a shower. I’m going now.”

“Good.” Taako looked around the kitchen. “How d’you feel about macaroni and cheese?”

Kravitz gave a wry smile. “I think we established that everyone likes macaroni.” He shut the bathroom door behind him and sat down on the edge of the bathtub.

Alright.

Time to unpack.

A Grim Reaper. A bounty hunter for the goddess of the balance between life and death. An undead monster.

How the fuck did something like _that_ get reincarnated into a disaster gay with a thing for suits and classical music?

The more answers he got, the less sense things made. He leaned forward, resting his face in his hands. Maybe he _should_ have taken that offer in Wonderland. Then he wouldn’t be dealing with all this bullshit. It certainly would have been easier and less confusing if he just…didn’t have his powers anymore.

He sighed. No, Aunt Paloma would murder him. And he’d still be left with no answers.

He still needed to look at what Istus had supposedly given him. He’d been too focused on getting the hell out of there to check before leaving the temple, and afterwards he’d mostly just followed Taako around in a daze until he insisted they go to Kravitz’s so Taako could cook him dinner. That was a problem for Future Kravitz. Right now, he was going to have a shower and burn the memory of today off his skin.

Kravitz’s head spun when he stood up and he braced himself on the wall. Damn vertigo. He started to get ready for his shower when he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror.

He’d avoided looking at his reflection as much as he could since he saw his other self last week. It hadn’t mattered much, in the long run. His reflection stayed the same every time he looked at it: just Kravitz, in whatever outfit he happened to be wearing at the time. No feather cloak, no skulls, no glowing red eyes.

Now he was faced with his past self again, and he stared at his reflection. This was what he’d looked like before, as a reaper. His ears were slightly pointed—was he an elf, too, on top of everything else, or was that just how reapers were? Apparently, he didn’t have glasses in his past life, either. He smoothed his hand over the feathers adorning his cloak and stuck into his hair at odd angles. It was weird, watching his reflection touch feathers but feeling nothing under his actual hands. Kravitz lifted his glasses and rubbed his eyes. When he looked again, his reflection was back to normal. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Alright. Okay. He did better this time than he had last time, anyway. So that was what he’d looked like as a Grim Reaper.

He had to say, it definitely helped explain his high school goth phase that he never totally grew out of.

Taako slammed his fist into the door several times, making Kravitz jump out of his skin. “I’m not hearing any running water in there! Have a relaxing fucking shower, goddamnit!”

~~~

“D’you wanna talk about it now?”

Kravitz shook his head. Taako was wrapped up in his arms on the couch, Netflix asking if they were still watching Queer Eye. “Do _you_ want to talk about what happened earlier?” He’d come out of the shower to find Taako crying in the kitchen. He refused to say why.

He shrugged uncomfortably. “I told you, it’s nothing.”

“Taako.” Kravitz cupped his chin. “Remember how we talked about this? I’m your boyfriend. I care about you. Talk to me so I can help you.”

Taako shoved him. “Hypocrite.”

“ _My_ trauma involves real-life deities. Forgive me for taking some time to process it myself before burdening you with it.”

“Well _my_ trauma involves—” Taako caught himself, frowning. “Fuck.” He snuggled down in Kravitz’s arms. “I’ll tell you about it when I’m good and ready. You’re not my therapist.”

Kravitz frowned down at him. “Do you have a—”

“ _Yes_ I’ve got a therapist. Mostly because Lup harasses me until I go see him, but yeah.” He rolled over in Kravitz’s arms so he was lying on top of him, arms folded on Kravitz’s chest. “Look, point is, it wasn’t even a big incident. Just got emotional about your casserole dishes. It’s fine. I’m fine. Can we talk about the fact that it’s dark out and I have to work tomorrow morning?”

He didn’t really want to let the topic go, but he didn’t want to push Taako too hard, either. Taako was being good about not bothering Kravitz too much about what happened at the temple. The least he could do was wait until Taako was ready to talk. “You’re welcome to stay the night, if you want,” he said. “It’s not very far to the Starblaster from here, so the morning shouldn’t be—”

Taako pressed his lips to Kravitz’s, effectively cutting him off. “Perfect,” he said, grinning. “Listen. If neither of us wants to talk, why don’t we do something different instead?”

Kravitz kissed him again, adding just a little more force behind it this time. When he broke it, they were both a little bit breathless. “I’d like that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up will be another NSFW oneshot, so keep an eye out for that *AUDIBLE WINK*
> 
> Also, you're now imagining teenage goth Kravitz. You're welcome?


	22. Double Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kravitz avoids dealing with his problems by going out with friends for once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Joyous Candlenights, nerds! I finally got around to finishing the next chapter! Work has been keeping me very busy, along with my various D&D and Monster of the Week groups that I'm involved in. Hopefully there'll be less of a gap between chapters this time.
> 
> In case you missed it, I did post another NSFW oneshot, which is at [this link](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15865584) or the fifth in the Echoes series. I _also_ posted a full fic for The Adventure Bang 2018! If you wanted to see literally the entire Balance campaign but from Killian and Carey's point of view, check out [The Journey](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16385873/chapters/38352929) here! I worked very hard on it and I'm very proud.

Taako had left by the time Kravitz woke up. He found a text from him when he picked up his phone to check the time.

_hey gone to work eat breakfast or else_

Kravitz caught himself grinning at his phone like a love struck idiot and quickly got out of bed to start his day.

Obsidian and Pitch were perched on his fire escape again when he opened his curtains. He opened the window and stuck his head out. “So,” he said. “You two are the Raven Queen’s familiars, then.”

Pitch tilted her head at him. Obsidian cawed and flapped his wings a few times. Kravitz sighed and scattered a handful of peanuts on the fire escape. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected. For them to suddenly be able to talk now that he knew their connection to the Raven Queen? Or worse, that he’d suddenly be able to understand them? No, that would’ve been silly.

It might have been nice, though. Maybe then they could explain why they were so attached to him. They were the Raven Queen’s familiars, not his. Shouldn’t they be with her?

Taako had told him to eat breakfast, so he poured himself a bowl of cereal. His coffeemaker _still_ wasn’t working (and at this point he wondered if he was ever actually going to get around to doing anything about that), so no coffee. He sent Avi a text asking if he was going to the gym at a time when Kravitz could join him, crunching away at his off-brand Cheerios. They tasted like cardboard, but they were better than nothing.

Once breakfast was done and his bowl was in the sink, the bag he’d taken to the temple yesterday caught his eye, sitting on the floor next to the sofa. He still didn't know what Istus had added to it, and he was a little afraid to look. If there really was something in there that he hadn’t put there himself, it meant that everything that happened yesterday was irrefutably real. Part of him still wanted to think it was a hoax, or a hallucination. He could live in denial a little while longer. He turned away and reached for the tarot deck still sitting on his coffee table instead. At least this was established weirdness. It was something he could understand and deal with.

He took a few calming breaths as he shuffled, trying to figure out a question to focus on. After a minute, he settled on _where should I go from here?_ Hopefully it wasn’t too vague.

A beautiful painting of the full moon reflected over a still body of water greeted him, along with the Roman numeral XVIII. Looking it up, he found the card was the Moon, and that it represented uncertainty and flux. Kravitz grimaced and shuffled it back into the deck. Not the most promising start to his day.

His phone buzzed. Avi was on his way to the gym right now. Kravitz grabbed his gym bag off the floor of his bedroom and hurried out the door. At least this was something normal he could deal with.

~~~

“I got a call from the Chug ’n Squeeze,” Taako said, chin in his hands. He was watching Kravitz try to write a tarot journal. It wasn’t going very well. He’d pulled the Moon again that morning and he wasn’t sure if that was because he hadn’t shuffled well enough or if his life was just that much of a shitshow that he needed to be reminded that he was in a time of uncertainty and flux two days in a row. “It’s been a week since we were there, so they want us to come pick glaze colours. When’re you free?”

Kravitz paused, looking up at the ceiling. “Um. Last night was our last concert for a bit, but I’ve got rehearsal during the day tomorrow through Tuesday.”

Taako grimaced. “Yeah, tomorrow doesn’t work for me. I’ve got a thing on Fridays.”

“You do?” Kravitz blinked at him. “You—forgive me, I don’t remember there being something last week.” Last Friday had been Kravitz’s first concert, though. He’d been a little distracted.

“Nah, it’s every other week.” Taako shrugged, but there was something stiff about it. “Gotta go see my, y’know. My therapist. Otherwise Lup’ll yell at me and fuck nobody wants that.”

Kravitz nodded. Taako had mentioned his therapist the other day. “Do you—we could go after that, if you like. I could even go with you. If that’s not—if you’d like that,” he added hastily. “I wouldn’t want to impose on something so personal—”

Taako waved him off. “It’s fine, homie. Don’t worry about it. Sure, we can hit up the Chug ’n Squeeze after Bradson’s done poking around with my brain.” He jabbed at his phone. “I’ll let them know we’re good for tomorrow night.”

Kravitz’s phone buzzed and he jumped. It was Avi.

_hogsbottom???_

Kravitz swore. He’d completely forgotten. He looked sheepishly up at Taako. “So. Are you free tonight?”

Taako laced his fingers under his chin, smirking at Kravitz. “I mean, I was planning on hanging around your apartment until it was conveniently too late to leave again. Why?”

“Just, you know, wondering.” Kravitz cleared his throat. “I—often on Thursdays, I’ll go out for drinks with my friend Avi. He told me to make you come, because he wants to meet you.” Taako laughed. “I mean, you don’t have to, of course, but—”

“Yeah, sure, why not?” Taako said casually. “I’m down. I mean, it’s only fair, right?” he added. “You’ve—you know, you’ve met most of my friends at this point—I should meet yours, yeah?”

Kravitz smiled and leaned over to kiss Taako’s cheek. “Thank you. It means a lot to me that you even want to.”

Taako shoved his face away, giggling. “Sap.” He smoothed out his clothes as Kravitz went back to his journal. “D’you think I should change?”

“What?” Kravitz looked up again. Taako was frowning down at his outfit. He was wearing a dark green tunic dress and floral leggings tucked into brown ankle boots. “No, you look very nice. Why would you change?”

He shrugged and leaned back in his seat, not looking at Kravitz. “Never mind. It’s dumb.”

“Taako—”

“It’s fine, Krav.” Taako shook his head. “Just—my garbage brain being garbage. Don’t worry about it.”

Kravitz reached over and squeezed his hand. “If you say so.”

~~~

“Hogsbottom?” Taako chortled. “What kind of name is Hogsbottom?”

Kravitz shrugged, but he was smiling. “Beats me. Avi just likes this one for some reason.” Taako’s arm was linked through Kravitz’s as they approached the pub. He didn’t see Avi outside, but he did recognize Johann leaning on the wall again.

Johann perked up slightly as they approached. “Hey,” he said.

“Good evening,” Kravitz said politely. He’d just seen Johann at rehearsal a few hours ago. “Has Avi gotten here yet?”

He shook his head. “Don’t think so. I was, um. Waiting out here for him. Actually.” Taako cleared his throat. “Oh, hey,” Johann said, like he was just noticing Taako. “You're Kravitz’s boyfriend that Avi won’t shut up about, right?”

Taako tossed his hair, smiling smugly as Kravitz stammered. “That’s me. T-A-A-K-O, you know, Taako, from TV?”

Johann looked at him blankly. “Okay then.”

“Taako, this is Johann,” Kravitz said, quickly trying to wrangle the conversation back. “He’s second violin in the orchestra.”

“Nice to meet you, my dude.” Taako held out a hand to shake, and Johann took it somewhat gingerly. “We gonna head inside or what? It’s freezing out here.”

“It’s not that cold,” Kravitz protested.

Taako fixed him with a flat look. “You’re so cold all the time anyway that you just don’t notice.” He dragged Kravitz into the pub, Johann trailing behind them.

There was a small stage being set up at one end of the pub. Kravitz raised an eyebrow. He hadn’t known they had live entertainment at Hogsbottom. Granted, he’d only ever been there once, so he didn’t exactly have a huge frame of reference. They managed to find a booth not too far from the entrance so Avi would be sure to see them when he came in. Taako slid into the booth next to Kravitz, and Johann awkwardly clasped his hands together on top of the table across from them. “So,” Kravitz said, desperate for the awkward silence to end, “how’s the composition coming?”

Johann immediately brightened. “Oh, it’s, uh, it’s going good. I think it’s almost done? I’m just hammering out some of the stuff. You know. The violin part’s the only part that I’m really happy with right now, I think. But I guess that’s just personal bias or something, probably. I guess.”

“Hey!” Avi jogged over to their table, waving. “Sorry I’m late.” He dropped into the booth next to Johann, casually planting a kiss on his cheek. Johann blushed and ducked his head, but smiled. “Got in an argument with the landlord again.”

Kravitz stared between them as Avi leaned across the table to offer Taako a handshake. “You must be Taako! Kravitz doesn’t shut up about you, so it’s good to finally meet you!”

“I heard that you don’t shut up about him either,” Kravitz retorted. “Also, are we just—we’re going to just ignore this?” He gestured to Avi and Johann. “You didn’t tell me you two were—”

“It just didn’t come up,” Johann said with a shrug.

Avi propped his chin in one hand, smirking. “I took some initiative, unlike some people.”

“I take plenty of initiative,” Kravitz protested.

Taako cleared his throat. “I asked you out, homie, not the other way around.”

Kravitz stammered. “That’s—”

“Anyway,” Taako continued, leaning back in the booth seat, “ch’boy hasn’t eaten in like six hours.” He snatched a menu off the table. “What’s the food like here?”

The table quickly devolved into arguments about the finer points of pub food. Kravitz was almost surprised at how seamlessly Taako integrated himself into the group. But then again, this was Taako he was talking about. He was one of the most casual people Kravitz knew. He watched Taako laugh at some dumb joke Avi made, chin in one hand and a smile on his face.

Avi kicked him under the table. “Hey, quit being gay for like, a second and pay attention.”

Kravitz sat up straight, flustered. “What? I’m—”

“I asked you, like, six times if you wanted anything. I’m getting the first round.” Avi was grinning, clearly smug about his needling. “So for the _seventh_ time, do you want anything?”

“I, ah.” Kravitz cleared his throat. “Redcheek Cider, please.”

Taako leaned into Kravitz’s side as Avi stood up. “Be right back.” He pointed at the two of them. “Stop canoodling, you two.”

Kravitz flipped him off and Taako howled with laughter. “Bite me,” Kravitz said easily. “I’ll canoodle as much as I damn well please.”

Avi whacked him in the arm and headed off towards the bar. Taako was still snickering. “I’ll canoodle as much as I damn well please?” he repeated. “I can't believe I’m dating such a fucking _dorkus_.”

“Excuse me?” Kravitz said. “You’re more of a dorkus than I am.”

“You’re both dorkuses for unironically using the word ‘dorkus,’” Johann said flatly. He held up a hand as Taako opened his mouth. “Yes I realize that calling you guys dorkuses automatically makes me a dorkus. I am aware.”

A large blue lizard appeared at their table. “Hey, Johann! Kravitz!”

Kravitz automatically grabbed Taako’s hand and squeezed it, trying not to let his face show that he was about to lose his shit. Taako leaned further into his side and started playing with one of Kravitz's dreadlocks. “Hi, Jeremy,” Johann said.

Oh. Right. Jeremy was a dragon-lizard once upon a time. Kravitz knew that. “Hello,” he said, sounding a lot calmer than he felt. “What brings you around here?”

Jeremy pointed to the stage. “My band’s playing tonight! Sort of a test run. We’re hoping to make it more of a regular gig, eventually, but, uh.” He squirmed, looking about as sheepish as a man-shaped blue dragon could look. “We, uh, basically only got it because my wife works here, though.”

“It’s still something,” Kravitz said reassuringly. “I’m sure things will pan out for you. You’re still coming to help out with the first violin auditions next week though, right?”

“Oh, sure, yeah.” He glanced over at the stage. “Uh, gotta go, I gotta finish setting up. Wanted to come say hi though. Later!” With a wave, he jogged off towards the stage.

“You good?” Taako asked quietly. He squeezed Kravitz’s hand.

Kravitz slowly released Taako’s hand from the death grip he hadn’t realized he was crushing it in. “I’m fine, yes. Thank you.”

Johann was watching the two of them, frowning. “Okay then,” he said.

Avi arrived with everyone’s drinks before Kravitz could say anything, much to his relief. What could he say?

Things passed fairly smoothly after that. Jeremy introduced his band as “Scales Fangbattle and the Dragon Men,” which Kravitz thought was a little on the nose. Considering he was the only one who literally saw Jeremy as a dragon, though, he figured it was fine. They were a little loud for Kravitz’s taste, but Jeremy definitely seemed more suited to playing a guitar than a violin. Taako and Johann got into a passionate discussion (that was just left of an argument) about baking while Avi and Kravitz listened, exchanging looks of confused solidarity. Avi kept trying to bug at Kravitz about Taako, or bug at Taako about Kravitz, but both of them gave as good as they got. It was...nice. For just one evening, Kravitz wasn’t a supernatural undead freak with psychic powers and a rapidly building case of anxiety. He was Kravitz McCallister, hanging out with his friends and his boyfriend, drinking and talking and laughing and just having a good time.

There was a little voice in the back of his head that kept telling him it wouldn't last, but it sounded suspiciously like himself, so he ignored it. He’d never given very good advice, anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said, hopefully the next one will be out sooner than this one! It'll either be the next full chapter or a short story about Davenport and the history of the Starblaster. If you have any suggestions of side stories you'd like to see please let me know! Have a joyous Candlenights season and I'll see you guys in the new year!


End file.
